Swedish specialty steel producer SSAB has posted its financial results for the third quarter and the first nine months of the current year.
The company has reported a net profit of SEK 3.51 billion ($313.93 million) in the third quarter, compared to a net profit of SEK 5.07 billion in the corresponding period of 2022 and a net profit of SEK 3.93 billion in the second quarter this year. The company’s sales revenues amounted to SEK 29.33 billion ($2.62 billion) in the third quarter, decreasing by 7.6 percent quarter on quarter and down by 6.9 percent year on year. In the same period, the company reported an operating profit of SEK 4.37 billion ($390.72 million), compared to an operating profit of SEK 4.96 billion recorded in the second quarter this year, while the decrease was mostly due to the weaker European market.
In the first nine months this year, SSAB reported a net profit of SEK 11.13 billion ($995.8 million), compared to a net profit of SEK 19.11 billion in the corresponding period of 2022, while the company’s sales revenues amounted to SEK 93.02 billion ($8.32 billion) in the first nine months, decreasing by 10.9 percent year on year. The company’s operating profit in the first nine months this year amounted to SEK 14.07 billion ($1.25 billion), compared to an operating profit of SEK 25.51 billion in the first nine months last year.
The main reason for the decline in the company’s net profit on year-on-year basis was weak steel demand and the bigger-than-expected seasonal slowdown in the European market. The company said it has started to take measures to adjust production, cost and staffing in order to cut costs. These measures include temporary and permanent layoffs, use of working-hour banks, a restrictive approach to recruitment and other fixed costs. Meanwhile, SSAB said it is continuing the transformation to remove carbon dioxide emissions, lower costs and strengthen its product portfolio.