• Home
• Oil & Gas
• News Article

Dow Reports Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2009 Results

Joint Venture Performance, Emerging Geographies Driving Growth

Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) -February 04, 2010 - The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE: DOW), a leading science and technology company, reported sales of $12.5 billion for the fourth quarter 2009, an increase of 15% compared to reported sales in the same period last year. Earnings per share were $0.08, equivalent to $0.18 per share excluding certain items and discontinued operations. The Company reported full-year 2009 sales of $44.9 billion and full-year earnings per share of $0.32, or $0.63 per share excluding certain items and discontinued operations. Equity earnings were $630 million for the year, with Dow Corning and EQUATE Petrochemical Company among the largest contributors. Dow ended the year with a run-rate of $1.7 billion in savings from structural cost reductions, and cost synergies and restructurings related to its acquisition of specialty chemicals company Rohm and Haas..

The Company also reported sequential sales improvements throughout the year

Sales in the Basic Plastics operating segment, which is comprised primarily of Dow's polyethylene business, were $2.9 billion, up 17% from the same quarter last year on a pro forma[1] basis. Continued demand for polypropylene and polyethylene drove double-digit volume growth versus the fourth quarter of 2008. This is the fourth consecutive quarter of polyethylene volume growth. In one of the worst economic climates in decades, Dow's Basic Plastics operating segment generated $1.7 billion of EBITDA[2] in 2009. Sales in the Basic Chemicals segment were $728 million, up 5% from the same period last year on a pro forma basis. Both Basic Plastics and Basic Chemicals saw volume gains of 13% and 23% compared to the previous quarter. Performance Products reported sales of $2,604 million, up 1% from the same period last year.

"Dow delivered significantly better year-over-year revenue and earnings in the fourth quarter driven largely by volume gains across virtually all operating segments and improved equity earnings," said Andrew Liveris, chairman and chief executive officer. "Emerging geographies were a major factor in our results for the quarter, with volume up an impressive 33 percent, truly reflecting the strength of our broad geographic footprint. Quarterly equity earnings returned to a level not seen since before the economic downturn, further demonstrating the strategic importance of our joint ventures. We achieved all of this while furthering our growth strategy and by maintaining our focus on financial discipline. This allowed us to grow revenues, volume and earnings while increasing our R&D investments yet still achieving reductions in structural costs."

Despite the economic downturn, demand in India, the Middle East and Africa showed strong signs of growth. Fourth quarter sales volume in the India, Middle East and Africa regions was up 40% compared to the same period last year on a pro forma basis, outperforming sales volume growth across all other geographies. "Despite the global economic challenges we faced, our focus never strayed from delivering the most innovative and competitive solutions to our customers and regional stakeholders," said Henry Roth, President, Dow Middle East. "With leadership in the petrochemical industry transitioning to fast-growth economies like those of the Middle East, we are confident that our joint venture commitments in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE will continue to spell success for Dow and its partners in the Middle East."

2009 Full Year Middle East highlights:

• Dow significantly expanded its advanced materials and performance products with the acquisition of Rohm and Haas. The acquisition positions Dow for leadership in a number of market segments, including water treatment, oil and gas processing, industrial and architectural coatings, electronics and consumer goods.

• Dow grew its business volumes across the entire region and launched 4 new business units to better serve Middle East customers: Dow Construction Chemicals, Dow Coating Materials, Dow Water & Process Solutions and Dow Flooring.

• Dow reinforced its commitment to Kuwait by appointing Markus Wildi to the newly created role of Vice President of Corporate Development in Kuwait.

• Dow announced plans to establish the Dow Middle East Research and Development Center at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

• Dow partnered with TASNEE, Saudi Arabia's largest private petrochemical company, to expand its global manufacturing footprint. The newly-formed Saudi Acrylic Monomers Company (SAMco) will be the first acrylic producer in the region.

The complete fourth quarter and full year 2009 earnings statement is available at:

http://www.dow.com/financial/reports/09q4earn.htm

- Ends -

About Dow in the Middle East
Dow has a longstanding relationship with the Middle East beginning with the establishment of manufacturing and commercial facilities in the United Arab Emirates and Egypt more than 30 years ago. Since then, Dow has established a solid presence in the Middle East petrochemicals industry, partnering with leading regional companies to set up state-of-the-art petrochemical complexes across the region. For nearly 15 years, Dow and Petrochemical Industries Company K.S.C. (PIC) of Kuwait have shared one successful milestone after another, partnering on five industry-leading joint ventures. Saudi Aramco and Dow are in the formation process of a joint venture to build, own and operate a world-scale manufacturing complex and industrial value park in Ras Tanura. From the entrepreneurship initiatives of Young Arab Leaders to the new Dow Middle East R&D Center at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia, Dow actively supports the social and economic aspirations of the communities where it operates. For more information about Dow in the Middle East, please visit www.dowmiddleeast.com

About Dow
Dow combines the power of science and technology with the "Human Element" to passionately innovate what is essential to human progress. The Company connects chemistry and innovation with the principles of sustainability to help address many of the world's most challenging problems such as the need for clean water, renewable energy generation and conservation, and increasing agricultural productivity. Dow's diversified industry-leading portfolio of specialty chemical, advanced materials, agrosciences and plastics businesses delivers a broad range of technology-based products and solutions to customers in approximately 160 countries and in high growth sectors such as electronics, water, energy, coatings and agriculture. In 2009, Dow had annual sales of $45 billion and employed approximately 52,000 people worldwide. The Company's more than 5,000 products are manufactured at 214 sites in 37 countries across the globe. References to "Dow" or the "Company" mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted. More information about Dow can be found at www.dow.com.

For further information on Dow:
Hani Wassim
Dow Middle East
T +971 4 312 3668
Email; HWassim@dow.com

Reuven Proença or Anan Ibrahim
Weber Shandwick
t +971 4 3210 077
Email: dow@ws-mena.com

¹ The pro forma historical information reflects the combination of Dow and Rohm and Haas assuming the acquisition had been consummated on January 1, 2008, and the treatment of Dow's Calcium Chloride business as discontinued operations.

[2] Earnings before interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization ("EBITDA"). A reconciliation of EBITDA to "Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations Before Income Taxes" is provided following the Operating Segments table.

© Press Release 2010