Dow Chemical Co

Shares of several chemical companies fell Tuesday after industry leader Dow Chemical Co. announced its second set of wide-ranging price hikes in less than a month, again trying to offset record costs for energy and raw materials. Midland, Mich.-based Dow said it would raise the prices of its products by as much as 25% in July after across-the-board price increases of as much as 20% on June 1.

A consortium of Middle Eastern investors and American buyout firms reportedly is preparing a $50-billion bid for Dow Chemical Co. in what could be the world's biggest leveraged buyout ever. Quoting sources close to the deal, the Sunday Express, a British tabloid paper, said Sunday a financing package had been put in place for a breakup bid of between $52 and $58 a share. Dow's shares closed down 35 cents at $44.47 on Thursday.

Only days after announcing that it's not in talks involving a leveraged buyout, Dow Chemical Co. has shown the door to a senior advisor and an executive, accusing them of trying to negotiate a deal behind the company's back. Senior advisor J.

Nearly three decades of legal struggle came to a head in a Los Angeles courtroom Thursday, as a trial began in a case pitting impoverished Latino field hands against two of America's largest corporations. Dole Food Co. knowingly exposed Nicaraguan banana workers three decades ago to a pesticide made by Dow Chemical Co. that caused permanent sterility, an attorney for the men said in opening arguments in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

Dow Chemical Co. will shut a number of plants and eliminate about 1,000 jobs to cut costs and direct capital toward businesses with better growth prospects, the largest U.S. chemical maker said Tuesday. Dow said it would incur a related charge of $500 million to $600 million, including severance costs and asset write-downs. The plant shutdowns and job cuts will generate annual savings of about $180 million, the company said. Dow has been hurt by soaring hydrocarbon feedstock and energy costs.

A federal appeals court has ruled that Dow Chemical Co. is not entitled to a refund of $22.2 million in taxes it paid after the IRS challenged deductions on life insurance policies it had taken out on more than 21,000 employees. Dow had claimed deductions of more than $33 million for interest it paid on loans that covered the life insurance premiums. Dow bought the policies in 1988 and 1991 and paid premiums using loans from the insurers with the cash value of the policies as collateral.

Los Angeles-based Dames & Moore Group bought Radian International from industrial and agricultural products giant Dow Chemical Co. for $117 million in cash, expanding its process engineering business. Austin, Texas-based Radian generates annual revenue of about $300 million from the engineering, construction and information management services it sells to large chemical, petroleum and manufacturing companies, and to government agencies.

Dow Chemical Co., the second-biggest U.S. chemical company, said it will lease 37,500 personal computers from IBM Corp. in a three-year contract valued at more than $90 million. Dow plans to upgrade all PCs used by its employees in 55 countries beginning in March. The contract announced Thursday with Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM, the world's largest computer company, includes maintenance and delivery. Dow, based in Midland, Mich.

Dow Chemical Co., the world's fifth-largest chemical company, said it's in talks to buy the 32% of Mycogen Corp. it doesn't already own. Mycogen is an agriculture biotechnology company with annual sales of about $211 million. Dow owns 68% of the San Diego-based company through its crop protection unit, Indianapolis-based Dow Agrosciences, which has annual sales of about $2 billion.

Women in California who charge that Dow Corning Corp.'s silicone breast implants caused them health problems may not sue its parent company, Dow Chemical Co., the California Supreme Court ruled Thursday. The 6-1 decision means that women in California will be limited to sharing in the tentative $3.2-billion deal that Dow Corning announced Wednesday to settle claims from about 170,000 plaintiffs across the country. Women in some states have been able to sue Dow Chemical for additional damages.