DOW (DOW) risk factors, FY2024 10-K

DOW's FY2024 10-K, filed Feb 04, 2025, lists 13 risk factors in 3 groups. There is no earlier 10-K to compare against, so the most company-specific risks are listed below.

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Risk factors listed
133 groups
Section length
4k wordsItem 1A

DOW's biggest risks in the FY2024 10-K

  • Dow Inc.'s risk profile is dominated by chemical industry supply and demand volatility, raw material feedstock costs, and environmental liabilities.
  • Additional major exposures include greenhouse gas regulations, litigation including Union Carbide asbestos claims, and plastic waste concerns.

The risks most specific to DOW

  • Climate Change: Climate change-related risks and uncertainties, legal or regulatory responses to climate change and failure to meet the Company’s climate change commitments could negatively impact the Company’s results of operations, financial condition and/or reputation

    Climate change and legal or regulatory responses could disrupt operations or cause Dow to miss its climate commitments.

  • MACROECONOMIC RISKS

    Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits: Increased obligations and expenses related to the Company's defined benefit pension plans and other postretirement benefit plans could negatively impact its financial condition and results of operations

    Dow maintains sponsored defined benefit pension and postretirement plans in the U.S. and internationally despite U.S. plans being frozen.

  • MACROECONOMIC RISKS

    Supply/Demand Balance: Earnings generated by the Company's products vary based in part on the balance of supply relative to demand within the industry

    Earnings depend on industry supply and demand balances, which are disrupted by new capacity additions in basic commodities.

  • LEGAL AND REGULATORY RISKS

    Health and Safety: Increased concerns regarding the safe use of chemicals and plastics in commerce and their potential impact on the environment have resulted in more restrictive regulations and could lead to new regulations

    Increasing regulatory and societal restrictions on the safe use of chemicals and plastics could harm operations.

  • LEGAL AND REGULATORY RISKS

    Union Carbide is and has been involved in a large number of asbestos-related suits filed primarily in state courts during the past several decades. At December 31, 2024, Union Carbide's total asbestos-related liability, including future defense and processing costs, was $791 million ($867 million at December 31, 2023)

    Union Carbide carries a total asbestos-related liability of $791 million, alongside risks from plastic waste and recycling infrastructure gaps.

  • OPERATIONAL AND STRATEGIC RISKS

    Goodwill: An impairment of goodwill could negatively impact the Company’s financial results

    Continued weak demand for specific product lines could trigger a goodwill impairment charge against earnings.

  • OPERATIONAL AND STRATEGIC RISKS

    Operational Event: A significant operational event could negatively impact the Company's results of operations

    Operational risks include cyberattacks, limited AI utilization, pandemics, and natural phenomena like freezing, drought, and hurricanes at manufacturing sites.

  • OPERATIONAL AND STRATEGIC RISKS

    Raw Materials: Availability of purchased feedstock and energy, and the volatility of these costs, impact Dow’s operating costs and add variability to earnings

    Production costs depend on volatile purchased hydrocarbon feedstocks like ethane, propane, butane, naphtha, and condensate, plus monomers like ethylene and propylene.

All 13 risk factors

Headings as the filing states them, in filing order.

Other

  1. 01CLIMATE CHANGE - RELATED RISKS
  2. 02Climate Change: Climate change-related risks and uncertainties, legal or regulatory responses to climate change and failure to meet the Company’s climate change commitments could negatively impact the Company’s results of operations, financial condition and/or reputation

MACROECONOMIC RISKS

  1. 03Financial Commitments and Credit Markets: Market conditions could reduce the Company's flexibility to respond to changing business conditions or fund capital needs
  2. 04Global Economic Considerations: The Company operates in a global, competitive environment which gives rise to operating and market risk exposure
  3. 05Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits: Increased obligations and expenses related to the Company's defined benefit pension plans and other postretirement benefit plans could negatively impact its financial condition and results of operations
  4. 06Supply/Demand Balance: Earnings generated by the Company's products vary based in part on the balance of supply relative to demand within the industry

LEGAL AND REGULATORY RISKS

  1. 07Health and Safety: Increased concerns regarding the safe use of chemicals and plastics in commerce and their potential impact on the environment have resulted in more restrictive regulations and could lead to new regulations
  2. 08Litigation: The Company is party to a number of claims and lawsuits arising out of the normal course of business with respect to product liability, patent infringement, employment matters, governmental tax and regulation disputes, contract and commercial litigation, and other actions
  3. 09Union Carbide is and has been involved in a large number of asbestos-related suits filed primarily in state courts during the past several decades. At December 31, 2024, Union Carbide's total asbestos-related liability, including future defense and processing costs, was $791 million ($867 million at December 31, 2023)

OPERATIONAL AND STRATEGIC RISKS

  1. 10Company Strategy: Implementing certain elements of the Company's strategy could negatively impact its financial results
  2. 11Goodwill: An impairment of goodwill could negatively impact the Company’s financial results
  3. 12Operational Event: A significant operational event could negatively impact the Company's results of operations
  4. 13Raw Materials: Availability of purchased feedstock and energy, and the volatility of these costs, impact Dow’s operating costs and add variability to earnings

Other DOW 10-Ks

  • FY2025 10-K risk factors
    15 risks2 new6 reworded

    Dow added risk related to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and potential loss of cost advantage for US NGLs.

    Filed Feb 03, 2026

About this page

The headings are the filing's own. The one-line readings and the overview are automated and can be wrong: read Item 1A of the 10-K for the exact wording.