May 1 (Reuters) - Agrichemicals firm Corteva ( CTVA )

beat market estimates for first-quarter profit on Wednesday,

aided by strong seed sales in North America.

Net sales from its seed segment rose 2% to $2.75

billion, backed by a 6% rise in prices.

However, overall net sales declined 8% to $4.49 billion,

due to weakness in its crop protection segment.

The Indianapolis-based company reported operating earnings

of 89 cents per share for the three months ended March 31,

compared with analysts' estimate of 84 cents per share,

according to LSEG data.