Anorexia – the intense fear of being overweight – is a terrible condition with tragic consequences. Less well-known is its opposite, the fear of not being big enough. Bigorexia, or reverse anorexia, is most commonly seen among bodybuilders, who become obsessed with putting on muscle.

But you can also find it among Europe’s biggest chemical companies. Their obsessive conviction that they are not big or strong enough (even though they are already huge and powerful) is a clear symptom of bigorexia.

The chemicals industry is at breaking point, its future on the continent is in jeopardy, says Cefic, the industry’s main trade association in Europe. It is up against a wall, in crisis, at a tipping point, at the centre of a perfect storm. Therefore Cefic is loudly demanding strong political action to save EU chemicals.

Here are some of the delusional claims the industry makes to justify these demands – and why they are simply not true:

1. “We are doing so badly”

No, they are not. They’ve had two decades of stellar success with super-high profits, and now they are starting to look more like a normal industry. This chart shows that the chemical industry is now more or less on par with index for industry as a whole:

2. “Profits are down”

Only compared to the crazy profit levels of 10 or 15 years ago. But they are still very healthy. Here are profit margins for some of Europe’s biggest chemical corporations (taken from their annual reports):

3. “We have no money”

Yes, they do. Lots of it! Since 2018, BASF has paid its shareholders €20 billion in dividends, or around €3 billion each year. Last year, this amounted to more than a quarter of the company’s entire earnings!

Bayer has cut its dividend in the past two years, but from 2015 to 2022, it also paid out €20 billion to shareholders. In a similar move, between 2013 and 2024, LyondellBasell purchased its own shares for a total of $23 billion (so-called share buybacks). 

These are not the actions of companies with no money.

4. “The competition is cheating”

No, the competition is competing. It is true that the Chinese state has been investing in chemicals for 30 years, while for 20 years energy prices have been lower in the US. But this is not news! EU chemical companies should have adapted years ago and invested some of their profits and dividends into improving non-price competitiveness.

Europe’s chemical industry has not seen new crackers built in 30 years. Many existing European steam crackers are small and high-cost compared to the newer, more efficient units in the US and Middle East. As McKinsey’s “state of the chemicals industry” report puts it; chemical companies “have focused more on incremental innovation, rather than on designing transformative solutions that address unmet needs for end users and command higher margins”.

This condition is now known as “FAFO”, after Trump popularised the expression last month.

5. “Regulation is holding us back”

“The dense regulatory environment can sometimes feel like quicksand,” said the head of Cefic last month. Oops! Cefic’s own monthly report in September identified demand as by far the biggest problem for European chemicals industry (see chart). Regulation wasn’t even mentioned! This is a common feature of Cefic’s monthly reports.

6. “What we do is really important!”

“Europe’s chemical industry is the foundation of its industrial ecosystem – every major value chain depends on us”, says Cefic. “Without urgent action, we risk losing an entire industrial base. This is not just about chemicals; it’s about Europe’s economic and strategic future.” Chemicals are “the industry of industries”, indispensable to Europe’s economy, the organisation claims.

When a person tries to portray themselves as more important than anyone else, it is called a narcissistic personality disorder. There is no such term for an entire industry that thinks this way about itself. Needless to say, opinions differ about which sector is the most critical to an economy.

Bigorexia is a distraction

The chemicals industry in Europe has been outperforming other sectors for three decades, with very high profit margins. Recently that performance has become more normal, more like the rest of the economy. In a global market economy, complaining about all this is like complaining about the weather.

Bigorexia is a collective delusion, a distraction from the sector’s real problems. Chemicals in Europe are facing the consequences of 30 years of low innovation and investment compared to Asian and US competitors. Profit margins are still healthy and companies have money – they need to focus it on areas where they have a competitive advantage.

Blaming regulation is simply clutching at straws.