AvestaPolarit raises Q3 profit

AvestaPolarit raises Q3 profit

Finnish stainless steel producer AvestaPolarit reported a profit of €18 million that is equivalent to approximately $17.5 million. In the same period of last year, the company's profit was at a level of €6 million equivalent to $ 5.8 million. According to company officials, the rise in the profit of Q3 is deriving from the increasing prices of certain products, higher conversion margins and higher volumes of delivery. Even a further rise is expected in Q4. Furthermore, AvestaPolarit's owner Otokumpu reported a net operating profit of stainless steel operations of €20 million in Q3, again with a rise of five times more than that of Q3 2001. Otokumpu took over Corus shares of 23.2% in July 2002 raising its own shares of 55.3% up to 78.5%.