Dulux maker Akzo Nobel plans to cut about 2,000 jobs globally

Dulux paint maker Akzo Nobel plans to cut about 2,000 jobs globally as part of efforts to reduce costs, targeting positions in its head offices, the Dutch company said on Tuesday.

"We will be simplifying our structure, our processes, reducing cost of administrative functions," Akzo Nobel's senior spokesperson told Reuters, saying positions in finance or global business services at the head offices would be affected.

The Amsterdam-listed group had announced a cost saving "industrial transformation" plan late last year, aiming for a 250 million euros ($278 million) benefit by 2027, following a post-COVID slowdown marked by rising raw material costs and customer destocking in its decorative do-it-yourself segment in Europe.

Related to this, it announced plant closures in May in Ireland, the Netherlands and Zambia.

Shares in Akzo Nobel were up 1.2% in the Amsterdam stock exchange by 0724 GMT.

Akzo did not have any specific estimate on how much costs would be saved with the job reductions, the spokesperson said, and added that part-time positions could also be affected.

The "structural adjustments" are set to be finalised by the end of 2025, the company said.