DuPont to Cut 4,000 Jobs as Demand Slows

DuPont Co., which invented nylon 63 years ago, said it will cut 4,000 jobs, 4% of its work force, as demand from clothing makers slows. The company will take a second-quarter charge of 40 cents to 45 cents a share. DuPont, the largest U.S. chemical company, expects to save about $400 million a year by the end of 2002. The company will also eliminate 1,300 jobs, or about 10%, of its contract workers, said spokesman Cliff Webb. About half of the jobs to be eliminated are in polyester and nylon operations, in which DuPont has struggled as the U.S. market for clothing slowed and global competition increased. DuPont is reducing fibers manufacturing in favor of faster-growing lines. It will scale back polyester and nylon manufacturing in Seaford, Del.; Kinston and Cape Fear, N.C.; and Camden, S.C., Webb said. No entire plant will be closed, he said. DuPont also will fire employees in its U.S. and European Lycra operations. Shares of Wilmington, Del.-based DuPont rose 26 cents to close at $40.96 on the NYSE. The shares have lost about 29% of their value in the last 12 months.