Baoshan Iron and Steel Co. Ltd., a listed subsidiary of Chinese major steelmaker Baosteel, issued its financial report for the first half of the current year, announcing that it registered an operating revenue of RMB 129.772 billion ($18.8 billion), down 7.88 percent year on year, while posted a net profit of RMB 4.002 billion ($0.58 billion) in the given period, down 36.87 percent year on year.
Baosteel mentioned the demand for steel in the first quarter slackened significantly amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in declines in finished steel prices, while in the second quarter the performance in steel industry improved amid the efficient control of COVID-19 and the resumption of production and construction, though rising iron ore prices exerted a negative impact on steel industry.
Baosteel expected that steel output will stay at high levels in the second half of the current year, which will increase the demand for import iron ore and bolster its prices and shrink steel enterprises’ profitability.