Midland, MI, April 4--Dow Chemical Co. expects annual earnings growth of 10% and plans to cut 3,000 to 4,000 jobs in a move to lower costs.
Dow reported a loss last year of $338 million, or $0.37 a share, on sales of $27.43 billion. Before items, the company earned $290 million, or $0.34 a share.
The firm plans to close underutilized and noncompetitive assets. Those assets include plants in Texas and Italy, as well as partial shutdowns in Louisiana and Canada.
Dow said its goal is to cut capital expenditures by $400 million this year. The company spent more that $1.5 billion in capital expenditures a year ago.
In February, the company said it was considering closing some less competitive assets in an effort to cut costs and streamline its operating processes. At the time, the company also said rising raw material and distribution costs caused by high and volatile oil and energy prices were hurting the profitability of its Dow Polyurethanes unit.
