Whirlpool Corp. posted a 29.4% drop in...

Whirlpool Corp. posted a 29.4% drop in third-quarter earnings from the same period in 1987. It blamed higher costs for materials. The Benton Harbor, Mich.-based appliance maker earned $31.5 million in the July-September period, during which it announced some price increases and acquired Emerson Electric Co.’s dishwasher and trash compactor manufacturing business.