1.   All the majors are moving away from bulk chemicals and increasing their reliance on higher-margin pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter drugs.

2.   DSM is most active in bulk chemicals such as polymers whose earnings tend to rise and fall in tandem with the economic cycle.

3.   Imperial Chemical Industries Plc said third-quarter net profit before exceptional items was unchanged as a slowdown in bulk chemicals offset gains in recently acquired specialty chemical assets.

4.   It has focused on higher-margin specialty chemicals and away from bulk chemicals which are more sensitive to swings in the economic cycle.

5.   Prices for bulk chemicals peaked in the first half of the year.

6.   The company is continuing its move away from heavy, cyclical bulk chemicals towards intermediates, or more refined chemicals such as the kind the Unilever units produce.

7.   The sales were part of a drive by Imperial, the third-largest chemicals producer in Europe, to move away from bulk chemicals.

8.   Drug companies turned more to copying compounds patented in other countries and importing bulk chemicals and packaging them in Brazil.

9.   Teva develops, manufactures and markets pharmaceuticals, bulk pharmaceutical chemicals, medical disposables and veterinary products.

10.   Unilever had been making money with its chemicals companies, which make products with higher profit margins than the bulk chemicals ICI has produced.