Kardemir’s net profit falls in Jan-Mar

Turkish integrated long steel producer Kardemir Karabuk Demir Celik Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S. (Kardemir) has announced its financial results for the first quarter of 2013.
 
In the first quarter, Kardemir posted a net profit of TRY 47.65 million ($26.2 million), falling by 36.6 percent compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Sales revenues of the company decreased by 10.5 percent year on year to TRY 371.4 million ($204 million). The company registered an operating profit of TRY 42.8 million ($23.5 million), declining by 28.8 percent year on year.
 
In the first three months, Kardemir produced 175,100 mt of metallurgical coke - down 3.9 percent, 382,007 mt of crude steel - up 2.3 percent, and 17,210 mt of pig iron - decreasing by 55.01 percent, all compared to the corresponding quarter of 2012. Meanwhile, in the period in question, the company's billet output totaled 245,582 mt, declining by 6.5 percent, while its bloom output amounted to 127,959 mt, rising by 24.5 percent, both compared to the first quarter of the previous year.
 
During the first quarter this year, Kardemir's rebar output decreased by 11.7 percent to 148,359 mt, its steel section production improved by 25.2 percent to 43,994 mt, while its rail product output totaled 34,614 mt - up 30.14 percent, all compared to the first quarter of 2012.
 
According to Kardemir's statement, during the first quarter the company spent TRY 12.7 million ($7 million) on its new coke plant and TRY 1.14 million ($626,100) on the capacity increase of melt shop converters.