Germany-based steelmaker Salzgitter Group has issued the key figures of its financial results for the third quarter and the first nine months of the current year.
According to the financial results, Salzgitter Group registered a net loss of €25.7 million in the third quarter of 2012, compared to a net profit of €21 million in the same quarter of the previous year. In the given period, sales revenues of Salzgitter increased by 3.1 percent year on year to €2.63 billion.
In the first nine months, the company posted a net loss of €48.2 million, compared to a net profit of €114.7 million in the same period of the previous year. In January-September, Salzgitter's sales revenues amounted to €8.01 billion, up 9.3 percent year on year.
According to Salzgitter's statement, the steel division reported generally sound capacity utilization throughout the reporting period. This is attributable, on the one hand, to the relatively high level of steel consumption by German industry and, on the other, to support from the distribution sector replenishing stocks in the first quarter. Moreover, a weaker euro permitted rolled steel exports to countries outside the EU on occasion, resulting in a slight increase in shipments.
In the third quarter, Salzgitter's crude steel output increased by 6.1 percent year on year to 1.9 million mt, while in the first nine months, its crude steel output reached 5.7 million mt, rising by 5.7 percent compared to the same period of 2011.