SEOUL: South Korean steel maker POSCO announced yesterday its first-quarter net profit has more than doubled from a year earlier on higher steel prices, hitting analysts’ forecasts on the nail.
The global steel industry has enjoyed firmer product prices since early 2002, but analysts say the steel cycle could weaken this year, mainly because of an inventory build-up in China.
POSCO, the world’s second largest steel maker behind Europe’s Arcelor, posted 469 billion won (US$381mil) in net profit for the three months ended March 31, compared with a 190 billion won profit a year ago. Revenues hit a record 3.26 trillion won, versus 2.66 trillion previously.
“Increased prices in global markets and our efforts to save cost and expenses helped us achieve a sharp growth in performance,” said Cho Jae-ku, the chief of POSCO’s Investor Relations Team. – Reuters
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