Dow Inc. will cut approximately 1,500 jobs and focus on reducing up to $700 million in direct costs through purchased services and third-party contract labor, the company said Jan. 30. Dow said the targeted actions will deliver $1 billion in cost savings and further reduce costs in response to ongoing macroeconomic uncertainty, while reinforcing its long-term competitiveness across the economic cycle.

"While these decisions are difficult, we must continue to take proactive actions to reduce costs while we navigate through this ongoing slower-than-expected macroeconomic recovery," said Jim Fitterling, Dow chair and CEO in a press statement. "These cost actions support our commitment to our long-term growth objectives, while aligning spending levels to the realities of the current macroeconomic environment. As 2025 progresses we will continue to evaluate options to reinforce our competitiveness and take further action if necessary."

Dow said it will record a charge of up to $325 million in the first quarter of 2025 for costs associated with these activities, which primarily include severance and related benefit costs, and the costs to implement these actions will be expensed as incurred ranging from $20 million to $30 million.