Dow’s second quarter is better than its first

Blaming a stalling economy, Dow says earnings slipped in the second quarter from the same period a year ago. But the largest US chemical company says it made progress over the first quarter and notes signs that business conditions will improve. Dow's sales declined 4. 4% from the year-ago quarter to 10. 9 billion. Volume increased by 1%, but prices fell 4%. Earnings, excluding extraordinary items, dropped 10. 2% to 482 million. "The pace of the global economic recovery has decelerated slightly, " Dow's chief financial officer, Jeffrey L. Tate, said in a July 25 conference call with analysts. "This was primarily led by China, where economic growth in the second quarter was lower than the market expected. " In Dow's largest business, Packaging and Specialty Plastics, sales fell 7% from a year ago due to lower volumes and lower prices, particularly in Asia. Sales in its Industrial Intermediates and Infrastructure segment dropped 7% despite