Finland-based stainless steel producer Outokumpu has announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2018. In the fourth quarter, the company registered a net profit of €27 million, compared to €128 million in the same quarter of the previous year. Outokumpu’s adjusted EBITDA totaled €89 million, increasing by 7.9 percent from an adjusted EBITDA of €82 million recorded in the same quarter of 2017, while the company's sales in the given quarter increased by 7.7 percent year on year to €1.6 billion.
Outokumpu's stainless steel deliveries in the fourth quarter last year decreased by 4.8 percent year on year from 561,000 mt to 534,000 mt.
In 2018, Outokumpu’s sales amounted to €6.88 billion, increasing by 8.1 percent compared to €6.36 billion the previous year, while its adjusted EBITDA in 2018 decreased to €485 million from €631 million in 2017. The company also registered a net profit of €130 million in 2018, decreasing from €392 million in 2017.
Outokumpu expects the stainless steel market to remain challenging in the first quarter this year, due to high distributor inventory levels. On the other hand, the company foresees its stainless steel deliveries in this period to be higher than in the last quarter of 2018.
Meanwhile, Outokumpu expects its first quarter adjusted EBITDA to be lower than in the previous quarter.