Spanish stainless steel producer Acerinox S.A. has announced its financial results for the third quarter and the first nine months of this year.
In the third quarter, the company reported a net profit of €48 million, decreasing by 31.4 percent compared to the same quarter of last year, while its EBITDA was €114 million, moving down by 21.9 percent compared to the same period of 2023 and remaining stable quarter on quarter.
Meanwhile, in the first nine months of this year the company reported a net profit of €162 million, down by 53.4 percent year on year, while its sales revenue came to €4.1 billion, declining by 19.3 percent year on year amid weak demand in Europe and the US, as well as lower effective prices and the impact of the strike at Acerinox Europa. In the given period, EBITDA amounted to €350 million, down 42.3 percent from the same period of last year.
Acerinox recorded an increase of 21 percent in production in the third quarter compared to the previous quarter thanks to the reactivation of the production at Acerinox Europa after a new collective bargaining agreement was signed, following an almost five-month strike, bringing total production to 491,000 mt.
According to the company's statement, the demand for stainless steel will remain weak for the remainder of the year. Despite the fact that inventories continue to be low, Acerinox is not optimistic for the short term given the end-of-year market seasonality and the geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainties. For the fourth quarter, Acerinox expects a higher EBITDA than in the third quarter due to the sale of Bahru Stainless for $95 million.