Dow Chemical sees weak agricultural sales continuing

Dow Chemical Co. said low commodity prices and currency fluctuations will continue to hurt sales to farmers this year, echoing the outlooks of Monsanto Co. and DuPont Co.

Agriculture industry revenue may contract 3 percent to 5 percent, said Tim Hassinger, president of Dow AgroSciences, the Indianapolis-based unit of Midland, Michigan-based Dow. He spoke during a presentation Thursday at the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Global Agriculture Conference.

Monsanto, which is eliminating 16 percent of its workforce, reduced its full-year forecast on Wednesday and said the company might not reach a 2019 profit goal on time due to pressure from weak agriculture markets.

DuPont in a presentation Thursday said the agriculture sector remains “ challenged” as farmer incomes continue to trend downward.

Dow agreed in December to merge with DuPont and form the world’s largest agriculture business.

Dow Chemical and DuPont announced Feb. 19 that Wilmington, Delaware, will be the headquarters for their combined agricultural business, but that Indianapolis will be one of its two “global business centers.”