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Corteva (CTVA) Risk Analysis
Risk Overview Q3, 2022
Risk Change Over Time
- Economy & Political Environment - Risk 1Our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially affected by disruptions in the global economy caused by the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
The global economy has been negatively impacted by the military conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Additionally, consistent with the company's announced decision to withdraw from Russia and, having already paused new sales in the country, the company continues to progress on its plans to conclude its production and business activities in the country. We have experienced shortages in materials, the inability to insure shipments, and increased costs for transportation, energy, and raw material and other inputs due in part to the negative impact of the Russia-Ukraine military conflict on the global economy. Further escalation of the military conflict or related geopolitical tensions, including increased trade barriers or restrictions on global trade, could result in, among other things, cyberattacks, further supply disruptions, and changes to foreign exchange rates and financial markets, any of which may adversely affect our business and supply chains. Such geopolitical instability and uncertainty has negatively impacted our ability to sell to, ship products to, collect payments from, and support customers in certain regions. Logistics restrictions, including closures of air space and shipping ports, the reduction of the availability of farmable land, and the destruction of facilities could further increase these adverse impacts and negatively impact demand for our products in the region. While Ukraine and Russia do not constitute a material portion of our business revenues, further escalation or expansion of economic disruption or the conflict's current scope could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. In addition, the effects of the ongoing conflict could heighten many of our known risks described in Part I - Item 1A – "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, filed with the SEC on February 10, 2022.
Risk Highlights Q3, 2022
Risk Word Cloud
Risk Factors Full Breakdown - Total Risks 31
- Regulation - Risk 1Corteva’s operations outside the United States are subject to risks and restrictions, which could negatively affect Corteva’s business, results of operations and financial condition.
Corteva’s operations outside the United States are subject to risks and restrictions, including fluctuations in foreign-currency exchange rates; inflation; exchange and price control regulations; corruption risks; competitive restrictions; changes in local political or economic conditions; import and trade restrictions; import or export licensing requirements and trade policy; and other potentially detrimental domestic and foreign governmental practices or policies affecting U.S. companies doing business abroad. In addition, Corteva’s international operations are sometimes in countries with unstable governments, economic or fiscal challenges, military or political conflicts, local epidemics or pandemics, significant levels of crime and organized crime, or developing legal systems. This may increase the risk to the company's employees, subcontractors or other parties, and to other liabilities, such as property loss or damage to the company's products, and may affect Corteva's ability to safely operate in, or import into, or receive raw materials from these countries. Additionally, Corteva’s ability to export its products and its sales outside the United States has been, and may continue to be adversely affected by significant changes in trade, tax or other policies, including the risk that other countries may retaliate through the imposition of their own trade restrictions and/or increased tariffs in response to substantial changes to U.S. trade and tax policies. Although Corteva has operations throughout the world, Corteva’s sales outside the United States in 2021 were principally to customers in Brazil, Eurozone countries, and Canada. Further, Corteva’s largest currency exposures are the Brazilian Real, Swiss franc, European Euro ("EUR"), and Canadian dollar. Inflation, market uncertainty or an economic downturn in these geographic areas could reduce demand for Corteva’s products and result in decreased sales volume, which could have a negative impact on Corteva’s results of operations. In addition, changes in exchange rates may affect Corteva’s results of operations, financial condition and cash flows in future periods. Corteva actively manages currency exposures that are associated with net monetary asset positions and committed purchases.
- Regulation - Risk 2Corteva may not be able to obtain or maintain the necessary regulatory approvals for some of its products, including its seed and crop protection products, which could restrict its ability to sell those products in some markets.
Regulatory and legislative requirements affect the development, manufacture and distribution of Corteva’s products, including the testing and planting of seeds containing Corteva’s biotechnology traits and the import of crops grown from those seeds, and non-compliance can harm Corteva’s sales and profitability. Seed products incorporating biotechnology derived traits and crop protection products must be extensively tested for safety, efficacy and environmental impact before they can be registered for production, use, sale or commercialization in a given market. In certain jurisdictions, Corteva must periodically renew its approvals for both biotechnology and crop protection products, which typically require Corteva to demonstrate compliance with then-current standards which generally are more stringent since the prior registration. The regulatory approvals process is lengthy, costly, complex and in some markets unpredictable, with requirements that can vary by product, technology, industry and country. The regulatory approvals process for products that incorporate novel modes of action or new technologies can be particularly unpredictable and uncertain due to the then-current state of regulatory guidelines and objectives, as well as governmental policy considerations and non- governmental organization and other stakeholder considerations. The uncertainty and increased length of regulatory approvals may reduce Corteva’s return on its research and development investments, and impede its ability to meet sales, profitability, or sustainability metrics. Furthermore, the detection of biotechnology traits or chemical residues from a crop protection product not approved in the country in which Corteva sells or cultivates its product, or in a country to which Corteva imports its product, may affect Corteva’s ability to supply its products or export its products, or even result in crop destruction, product recalls or trade disruption, which could result in lawsuits and termination of licenses related to biotechnology traits and raw material supply agreements. Delays in obtaining regulatory approvals to import, including those related to the importation of crops grown from seeds containing certain traits or treated with specific chemicals, may influence the rate of adoption of new products in globally traded crops. Additionally, the regulatory environment may be impacted by the activities of non-governmental organizations and special interest groups and stakeholder reaction to actual or perceived impacts of new and existing technology, products or processes on safety, health and the environment. Obtaining and maintaining regulatory approvals requires submitting a significant amount of information and data, which may require participation from technology providers. Regulatory standards and trial procedures are continuously changing. In addition, Corteva has seen an increase in recent years in the number of lawsuits filed by those who identify themselves as public or environmental interest groups seeking to invalidate pesticide product registrations and/or challenge the way federal or state governmental entities apply the rules and regulations governing pesticide produce use. The pace of change together with the lack of regulatory harmony could result in unintended noncompliance. Responding to these changes and meeting existing and new requirements may involve significant costs or capital expenditures or require changes in business practice that could result in reduced profitability. The failure to receive necessary permits or approvals could have near- and long-term effects on Corteva’s ability to produce and sell some current and future products.
- Regulation - Risk 3Corteva’s business is subject to various competition and antitrust, rules and regulations around the world, and as the size of its business grows, scrutiny of its business by legislators and regulators in these areas may intensify.
On July 9, 2021, President Biden issued an executive order promoting competition in the American economy. The order encouraged further examination and efforts by U.S. regulatory agencies to avoid market concentrations for agricultural inputs, that could challenge the survival of family farms. The executive order also directs the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture to take action to ensure that the intellectual property system, while still incentivizing innovation, does not also unnecessarily reduce competition in seed and other agricultural input markets beyond what is reasonably contemplated by the U.S. Patent Act and propose strategies for addressing those concerns across intellectual property, antitrust, and other relevant laws. While the ultimate impact of the executive order will depend on the actions ultimately resulting from the U.S. regulatory authorities, actions taken by such authorities may increase the regulation and regulatory costs associated with the agriculture industry in the future and restrict the company from pursuing certain growth opportunities, including mergers and acquisitions. Scrutiny from regulators in the U.S. and abroad may intensify as Corteva’s business presence grows. This scrutiny and related investigations, even when not resulting in an enforcement action, may result in damage to a company’s reputation, significant defense expense, as well as become a distraction to management. Antitrust and competition enforcement actions may result in regulators imposing fines, penalties, or restrictions on a company’s business practices in a manner that may significantly impact its results of operations.
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