Posted on 26 Oct 2018
Hyundai Steel Co., South Korea's second-biggest steelmaker by sales, said Friday its third-quarter net profit rose 7.3 percent from a year earlier on increased sales of automotive steel products.
Net profit for the July-September period rose to 192.9 billion won (US$169 million) from 179.7 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a statement.
"The sales of automotive steel products jumped 87 percent to 463,000 tons in the third quarter from 248,000 tons a year ago, helping with the net results," the statement said.
Faced with unfriendly business environments, such as spreading protectionism and slowing steel demand from carmakers and builders, Hyundai Steel will put a bigger focus on winning value-added auto steel orders from global carmakers, it said.
In fact, Hyundai Steel has been heavily reliant on its captive buyers, Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp., but it needs to explore new customers for sustainable growth. It earns 30 percent of overall sales by selling auto steel to Hyundai and Kia. They are all affiliates of Hyundai Motor Group, the world's fifth-biggest carmaker by sales.
Operating profit climbed 11 percent to 376.1 billion won in the third quarter from 339.7 billion won a year ago. Sales were up 8.6 percent to 5.23 trillion won from 4.82 trillion won during the mentioned period, it said.
