On February 3, 1994, BASF AG (HQ: D-67056 Ludwigshafen) and Yangzi Petrochemical Corporation of Nanjing (People's Republic of China), signed the articles of association, in Beijing, for a joint venture for the production of polystyrene. This is BASF's fifth joint venture in China, making it the biggest foreign investor in the chemical sector there. The new joint venture, to be known as Yangzi BASF Styrenics Company Limited (YBS), will be producing 100,000 t of polystyrene per year from 1996 onward. The total capital expenditure involved in the project is some DM 250m, which covers plants for the production of the intermediates ethylbenzene and styrene. BASF holds 60% of the shares of the new company, its Chinese partner the other 40%.

In setting up Yangzi BASF Styrenics Company, BASF is aiming to strengthen its position further in styrene and polystyrene and to participate in the fast-growing market of the People's Republic of China through a facility close to its customers there. The products of the joint venture are to be marketed primarily in the People's Republic of China. – With a current polystyrene production capacity of 1m t per year, BASF is the world's second largest producer.