DuPont is cutting 1,500 jobs after an extremely disappointing third quarter earnings report.
The cuts will come over the next 12-18 months as part of restructuring plan aimed at saving the chemical giant $450 million after it reported net income fell to $10 million, or 1 cent a share, from $452 million, or 48 cents, a year earlier.
DuPont earned 44 cents per share, excluding one-time items, compared with 69 cents per share for last year's third quarter.
Company revenue fell 9 percent to $7.4 billion.
DuPont Chair and CEO Ellen Kullman blames the sharp drop in earnings on weaker than expected demand titanium dioxide, a white pigment used in paint, and the company’s solar panel materials.
DuPont now expects full year 2012 earning to fall within the range of $3.25 to $3.30 per share. That’s compared to prior-year earnings of $3.55 per share on a comparable basis.
DuPont stocks were off over eight and a half percent in trading on the Dow mid-afternoon.