Hunan Province-based Chinese steelmaker Valin Iron and Steel has issued its preliminary financial report for the first quarter of this year, announcing a net profit of RMB 1.02-1.14 billion ($0.14-0.16 billion), down 31.66-38.86 percent year on year.
In the given period, the outbreak of the coronavirus exerted a negative impact on China’s economic development. Though the production of steel industry remained quite stable, demand was slack due to the extension of the Chinese New Year holiday and disruption of transportation, resulting in historically high levels of inventory of finished steel, which pushed down prices. As a result, Hunan Valin Steel’s profitability was negatively affected and decreased year on year.