Deere & Co said it was on course to beat Wall Street profits forecasts for the full-year, despite being on course for a washout quarter as it swallows costs of a corporate shake-up.

The US tractor maker restated that earnings for the year to the end of October would come in at $1.1bn, even though sales will tumble by 21%, two percentage points more than it had previously forecast.

The earnings target, while ahead of the $1.06bn that analysts have prepared for, implies the group will merely breakeven in the August-to-October quarter, with $1.10bn of earnings already booked this financial year.

The group said results for the fourth quarter would reflect "significant production cutbacks" and the costs of an economy drive which has merged Deere's small tractor division into the core agriculture business.

'Promising trends'

The comments came as the group unveiled a 27% fall to $420m in earnings for the May-to-July period, on revenues down 24% at $5.89bn.

Agriculture sales dipped 21% to $4.65bn, reflecting lower volumes of equipment sold.

Construction and forestry sales slumped 47% to $632m, leaving the division with an operating loss.

Samuel Allen, Deere's chief executive, noted "persistent global economic pressure" for the quarter highlighted "quite promising" underlying trends for the company.

"John Deere is well positioned to respond to the world's growing need for food, shelter, infrastructure and energy," Mr Allen said.