POSCO sees 36 percent fall in operating profit in Q1

Leading South Korean steelmaker POSCO has announced that it registered a 36 percent year-on-year drop in operating revenue in the first quarter this year, due to the increasing cost of raw materials and reduced demand.
 
POSCO's operating profit in the first quarter this year totaled $852 million, down from $1.332 billion in the same period in 2010, while the operating profit in the fourth quarter of last year was $480 million.
 
In the past week POSCO has raised its steel prices in the domestic market by 16 to 18 percent, on the back of the rising cost of iron ore and coking coal.