Sales down at Dow as supply issues and lower prices continue to bite

Michigan, US – Dow has reported full-year net sales of $44.6bn for 2023, a 22% fall from the $56.9bn achieved in 2022. Operating EBIT fell by 58%, from $6.6bn to $2.8bn. Declines were evident in all its operating sectors. The company attributed this to slower global macroeconomic activity, with year-on-year prices falling across the board.

Looking at the fourth quarter figures, net sales fell by 10% to $10.6bn, down from the $11.9bn achieved in the previous year’s quarter. Quarterly operating EBIT fell by 7% to $559m, from $601m in the 2022 quarter.

In the company’s industrial intermediates & infrastructure segment, which includes polyurethanes, net sales for the full year dropped by 25%, from $16.6bn in 2022 to $12.5bn last year. EBIT fell from $1.4bn to $124m, a 91% drop.

Fourth quarter sales in the segment fell from $3.6bn in 2022 to $2.9bn in 2023. Volume was down 2% year on year, with the company citing reduced supply availability as a driver. Operating EBIT fell from $164m to $15, another 91% drop.

In the quarter, a net sales decrease was reported in the polyurethanes & construction chemicals business. Lower prices in all geographic regions were partly offset by broad-based business and geographic volume gains. Lower local prices in its EMEAI region also had an effect on net sales.

“We saw year-over-year volume improvements in the quarter, [and] delivered our goal of $1bn in targeted cost actions for the year,” said CEO Jim Fitterling. “The strength of our balance sheet allows us to navigate the bottom of the cycle and have the strength to invest and capitalise on the next upside in the global economy.”