Mexico’s Minera Autlán recorded net profits of $2.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2023, a figure that contrasted with net losses of $41.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2022. After three consecutive quarters, the company recorded profits due to tax issues, according to the company financials reviewed by SteelOrbis.
Autlán is a supplier of inputs to the global steel industry. In Mexico, it recognized the impact of the cessation of operations of Altos Hornos de México (AHMSA) from January 2023. Global steel production, the company said, increased 0.5 percent. In Mexico, liquid steel production decreased by 12 percent.
Regarding manganese, several factors influenced annual price decreases of more than 40 percent in the minimum prices of ferroalloys. Thus, the company's net sales decreased 43.1 percent to $77.2 million.
The pre-tax loss was $24.5 million, although with an accounting record of $27.2 million in taxes, the loss turned into a net income of $2.7 million. That net profit contrasted with the losses of the previous three quarters.
In the third quarter it was $9.8 million, in the second it was $19.4 million and in the first quarter it was $12.5 million. For all of 2023, the company recorded net losses of $39.0 million, a figure that contrasted with net profits of $27.7 million.