Fujian Province-based Chinese steelmaker Fujian Sangang (Group) Co. issued its financial results for the first half of the current year on August 25, announcing a net loss of RMB 43.1284 million ($7.01 million) compared to a net loss of RMB 30.9949 million ($5.03 million) in the same period of 2013. In the first half this year, the company's operating revenue totaled RMB 9.161 billion ($1.49 billion), down 1.25 percent year on year.
In its report, Fujian Sangang stated that economic growth has slowed down in the second half of the year, resulting in a difficult situation for the steel industry. Meanwhile, China's average daily crude steel output has remained above 2.2 million mt, indicating that oversupply still exists. In addition, the steel industry has been suffering from high financial costs. Also, sluggish demand has caused declines in steel prices, negatively impacting the company's profits.