On Oct. 29, 2002, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services affirmed its double-'A'-minus long-term and its 'A-1'-plus short-term corporate credit ratings on Germany-based chemicals producer BASF AG, following the company's announcement that it has reached an agreement to acquire a package of crop protection products from Bayer AG (A+/Stable/A-1) for about €1.2 billion in cash. The outlook is stable. The transaction is part of the BASF group's long-term strategy to gradually reduce its strong dependence on the core chemicals cycle by investing in activities that follow different cycles, in particular agrochemicals, and oil and gas. To that end, the acquired portfolio of products, which generated sales of about €500 million in 2001, will further strengthen BASF's position as the worldwide number-four
