Russia's Severstal says Q4 crude steel output up 3 pct year-on-year

2018-01-31

Jan. 31, 2018 - Severstal , one of Russia's top steel producers, said on Friday its crude steel output totalled 3 million tonnes in the final quarter of 2017, 3 percent more than during the same period in 2016, when it saw output at 2.9 million tonnes.

The company, owned by one of Russia's richest men Alexei Mordashov, saw output in 2017 as a whole remain unchanged from the previous year, at 11.65 million tonnes.

Crude steel sales fell 2 percent in the fourth quarter, the company said, falling to 2.78 million tonnes due to a "significant stock sell-off" in the third quarter.

This was a smaller decline than expected, analyst at BCS Global Markets Oleg Petropavlovsky wrote in a note, adding that a 5 percent fall in sales had been forecast.

"Results are better than expected and we believe that risks of working capital build-up decreased materially after the report," Petropavlovsky said.

Russian steelmakers have been enjoying a more favourable climate since mid-2017, with global steel prices rising as world's largest steel producer China maintains output curbs in an attempt to improve air quality.

"Global export steel prices remained high on the back of Chinese production restrictions in the November-March heating season and decreased exports," the firm said in its statement.

"Though Russian steel demand softened due to seasonal factors, Russian export prices followed global trends and are expected to increase in Q1 2018," it added.