Nucor Corporation, the largest American minimill and steel scrap recycler, announced Tuesday that it projects Q2 losses will be narrower than previously expected, citing recent demand improvements.
In April, Nucor predicted its earnings would suffer even greater losses in the second quarter as compared to the first quarter. However, the company said Tuesday that its Q2 losses are now projected to be less severe than predicted in April, or about equal to its Q1 results."We believe this period of economic and steel industry distress will present unusually attractive growth opportunities for Nucor," Dan DiMicco, Nucor's chairman and chief executive, said. However, Mr. DiMicco also cautioned that although orders have increased in recent weeks, there is still uncertainty in the marketplace.
The firm also stated that the accelerated consumption of high cost pig iron inventories at its sheet mills in the second quarter compared to the first quarter are resulting in a "substantially greater burden", but that the recent improvement in demand as well as the company's cost cutting policies are helping to counteract this burden.