Mittal Steel reports decline in 2005 net profit
Mittal Steel Company, the world's largest steel producer, disclosed that net income for the three months ended December 31, 2005 rose 36 percent year on year to $650 million.
For the full year, Mittal Steel reported that net income fell 27.6 percent year on year to $3.4 billion. However, the company and analysts said the full-year figure was not directly comparable with the previous year because of Mittal's acquisitions and reorganizations during 2005.
“We are pleased to report solid performance in a more challenging year” said chairman and CEO Lakshmi N. Mittal. “2005 was also a year of considerable strategic progress for the company as we further expanded our global position.”
Separately, Mittal Steel has recently made a Euro 18.6 billion bid for its nearest competitor, Arcelor. The
Luxembourg-based company has rejected the offer.
The governments of
Luxembourg and
Spain have opposed the bid, while several top French officials have criticized it out of concern that jobs would be cut in
France and elsewhere on the continent. Mittal has said there would not job cuts.