Dow Chemical to cut jobs

Dow Chemical will cut 900 jobs and shutter plants on three continents because of weakness in Europe, which may soon tip back into recession if it has not done so already. Dow spokeswoman Rebecca Bentley said the layoffs are primarily focused on Western Europe and Brazil. She could not say whether there would be any layoffs in Michigan. The company expects that a little less than 375 of its 25,000 employees in North America will be affected. Dow was ravaged during the global and economic crisis that struck four years ago, cutting more than 10,000 positions then. CEO Andrew Liveris has aggressively sought to keep the company, the nation's largest chemical maker, agile despite its size. "These actions, while difficult, are in full alignment with our commitment to continually manage our portfolio to adapt to changing and volatile economic conditions, as we are seeing particularly in Western Europe," Liveris said.

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