Japanese steelmaker JFE Holdings Co. has announced its consolidated financial results for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2020.
In the fiscal year 2019-20, JFE Holdings recorded a net loss of JPY 193.29 billion ($278.9 million), when compared to JPY 169.82 billion net profit recorded in the previous fiscal year. The company's net sales amounted to JPY 3.73 trillion ($34.75 billion), down 3.7 percent year on year.
Meanwhile, in the given period, JFE Steel's consolidated crude steel output increased to 28.09 million mt, up 0.7 percent year on year.
JFE Steel said that overseas and national economies are slowing due to the coronavirus and that steel product demand is declining. Accordingly, the company suspended the operation of blast furnace No. 4 at its West Japan Works (Kurashiki District) at the end of April in response to the large and rapid drop in demand. JFE Steel also plans to temporarily stop production at its blast furnace No. 4 at the West Japan Works (Fukuyama District) by the end of June. Besides, it will implement cash-flow measures which include rigorous cost reduction mainly by cutting fixed costs, such as for repairs, emergency labor-reduction measures, extra stringent screening of investments, substantial reduction of inventories, and sales of assets.
JFE Steel stated that it will not provide a new forecast for the fiscal year 2020-21 due to uncertainties related to the coronavirus pandemic and the inability to evaluate reliably the business performance of the company due to the pandemic.