Deere and Co, the world's largest maker of farm equipment, Wednesday posted a 45-per-cent drop in profits, to 204 million dollars, citing the recession and tight credit situation that constrains farmers from buying new machines, dpa reported.
Revenues sank slightly by 1 per cent, to 5.1 billion dollars, and could be further hurt by a drought in Latin America, the company said.
The company also lowered its projections for 2009 from 1.9 billion dollars to 1.5 billion dollars.
Chief Executive Officer Robert Lane cut about 700 jobs last month. A credit squeeze in Brazil and the Argentina drought led to the loss of 502 jobs in Brazil, Bloomberg financial news service reported.
Under Lane, Deere has expanded sales abroad, with only 60 per cent of revenues coming from Canada and the US. Equipment sales rose 1 per cent in those two countries.
In Germany, for example, Deere machines command 19.8 per cent of the market.