In response to the substantial slowdown in demand during the fourth quarter, Praxair Inc. is reducing its fourth quarter guidance for fully diluted earnings per share and taking pre-emptive cost-cutting measures.
Fourth quarter guidance for fully diluted earnings per share is reduced to a range of $0.95 to $1.00, excluding charges. This range is roughly even with the $0.98 earned in the 2007 fourth quarter.
Just as with many other companies and industries, Praxair has seen a fall-off in demand during November and is expecting additional customer plant closures in December, which will further reduce volumes for the quarter.
New projects and new business applications are expected to offset this demand slowdown and a significant foreign-currency headwind.
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