On August 28, Hunan-based Chinese steelmaker Valin Group announced the financial results of its subsidiary Hunan Valin Iron & Steel Co. (Hunan Valin Steel) for the first half of the current year.
In the first half, Hunan Valin Steel registered a net loss of RMB 360 million ($58.81 million), down 73.94 percent compared to the net loss of RMB 1.3 billion ($0.21 billion) in the corresponding period of the previous year. Valin Steel 's operating revenues in the first half this year totaled RMB 28.3 billion ($4.62 billion), down 12.28 percent year on year, while the company's EBITDA in the given period amounted to $1.666 billion ($0.27 billion). These results were recorded against the background of softening prices in the steel market, weakened downstream demand and fluctuating raw material prices.
During the first six months this year, Hunan Valin Steel's outputs of pig iron, crude steel and finished steel totaled 6.658 million mt, 7.057 million mt and 6.705 million mt, respectively decreasing by 6.07 percent, 3.24 percent and 3.55 percent compared to the first half of 2012.