Syngenta sales increase 6 percent in third quarter

Agribusiness giant Syngenta posted a 6 percent increase in sales in the third quarter driven by a strong start to the Latin American growing season.

The company had sales of $2.7 billion for the quarter and has $11 billion in sales for the first nine months of the year.

Sales in Latin America increased 18 percent. The company said high soybean prices are causing increased investment in the crop in Brazil and Argentina.

Switzerland-based Syngenta employs about 400 workers at its biotechnology research arm in Research Triangle Park.

The company is in the midst of a $71 million, 147,000-square-foot expansion at RTP that includes high-tech greenhouses. It's expected to be completed later this year.