Dow Chemical and DuPont eye $120bn merger

A $120bn (€109.3bn) mega-merger plan between Dow Chemical and DuPont is unlikely to have an immediate impact on Ireland because neither of the US chemical giants have major manufacturing facilities here, but the deal will be closely watched by pharmaceutical firms which have huge plants in Ireland.

Ireland imported €5.8bn of chemicals in 2014, mainly from Dow, which is the largest global producer of chemicals, and from Du Pont, the third largest global producer, a leading international trade consultant, John Whelan, told the Irish Examiner.

Europe’s share in the global chemicals market has been falling for years, having once accounted for a third of the world market, the continent now makes up just 19%, he said.