MIDLAND (dpa-AFX) - Dow Corning Corp., equally owned by chemical products maker Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) and specialty glass maker Corning Inc. (GLW), on Tuesday reported a 61 percent decline in profit for the first quarter from last year.
Product margins declined on significant pricing pressure coupled with high raw material costs. Revenue for the quarter also declined from last year.
The company noted that while global demand continued to grow for its silicone-based materials, significant pricing pressure was impacting its performance.
Donald Sheets, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Dow Corning said, 'As expected, this was a difficult quarter due to oversupply in both the silicone and polycrystalline silicon industries combined with rising raw materials and energy costs.'
The company's net income for the first quarter was $70.5 million, down from $178.7 million in the same period last year.
Adjusted net income declined to $70.5 million from $175.4 million in the year-ago period.
Net sales for the quarter declined 4 percent from the year-ago period to $1.52 billion from $1.58 billion in the year-ago period.
Looking ahead, Dow Corning said its Hemlock Semiconductor Group joint ventures will continue to be challenged by the oversupplied polycrystalline silicon industry throughout 2012.
The joint venture is a provider of polycrystalline silicon and other silicon-based products used in the manufacturing of semiconductor devices, and solar cells and modules.
DOW closed Monday's trading at $33.88, down $0.85 on a volume of 11.29 million shares.
GLW closed Monday's trading at $14.35. In Tuesday's pre-market, the stock is down $0.07 or 0.49 percent to $14.28.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
