Just as analysts were talking up an acquisition by DuPont of the agricultural business US rival Dow Chemical may put up for sale, the company’s interim CEO, Edward Breen, appears to have thrown cold water on the idea.

The same analysts are interpreting Breen’s remarks during a conference call to present third-quarter results on Oct. 27 as meaning that DuPont may want to sell its own agriculture unit.

The executive running DuPont following the resignation of previous CEO Ellen Kullman said the company would take a “fresh look” at its cost structure and capital allocation strategy. Asked if this meant it was looking to sell the farm chemicals unit, which accounted for 22% of Q3 revenue, he said: "We will do what's right for our shareholders to create value for them.”

A portfolio manager told the news agency Reuters, however: “We would be shocked if DuPont's management team did not at least look at Dow's business – a large agriculture business like Dow's rarely changes owners."

DuPont is already targeting about $1.6 billion in annual cost savings by 2017, but another analyst told Reuters the company could raise its cost-cutting target by another 10-20%.

During his own company’s results conference call, CEO Kurt Bock suggested to journalists that BASF could be interested in looking at agriculture businesses other chemical companies may put up for sale.