Corning Inc. to cut 3,500 jobs

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) — Corning Inc. said today it is cutting 3,500 jobs, or 13 percent of its payroll, as demand slumps for glass used in flat-screen televisions and computers.

The specialty glass and ceramics maker, the world's largest maker of liquid crystal display glass, announced the cutbacks as its fourth-quarter profit plunged 65 percent to $249 million, or 16 cents a share, from $717 million, or 45 cents a share, a year earlier.

Excluding one-time items, its profit of 13 cents a share came in well below Wall Street's forecast of 20 cents a share.

Sales fell 31 percent to $1.08 billion from $1.58 billion, below $1.16 billion in sales forecast by analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

The company also cautioned that per-share profits before one-time items will likely be canceled out in the first quarter. Sales will fall below fourth-quarter levels as projected LCD glass volumes slump 20 percent to 25 percent, it said.