Posted on 19 May 2010
Despite the lukewarm trading in global steel markets, the China Steel Corporation (CSC), Taiwan`s largest integrated producer of steel products, posted US$0.042 in pretax earnings per share in the first four months of this year.
Institutional investors predicted CSC will post pretax earnings of US$946.37 million in the first half of this year and whole-year earnings will amount to between US$1.32 billion and US$1.42 billion this year; with the contribution of earnings from subsidiaries, CSC is expected to challenge US$1.57 billion in earnings in 2010.
CSC said it posted US$149.3 million in pretax earnings, or US$0.011 in EPS, on sales of US$598.35 million in April alone. The company registered US$563.34 million in pretax earnings in the first four months.
The outlook for steel market is mixed because the steel selling prices quoted in China have dropped by 200 up to 300 renminbi per metric ton over the past three weeks in the wake of China`s policy to cool down the heated housing market and the Greek debt crisis. The company projects a growth in wholesale steel prices for July and August shipments, despite declining spot steel prices.
CSC said it can still raise wholesale prices on its major products as hot-rolled steel. The company recently quoted the June wholesale prices for hot-rolled steel at US$690 per metric ton, still lower than the selling prices of between US$730 and US$750 quoted in the international marketplace.
