By Meryl Kao /
China Steel Corp (CSC, 中鋼), Taiwan’s largest integrated steelmaker, yesterday said pre-tax profit surged 179 percent month-on-month to NT$1.35 billion (US$42.67 million) last month, as global steel prices rose due to production cuts in China and disruptions from the war on Iran.That was compared with NT$485 million in pre-tax profit recorded in April. CSC attributed higher gross profit helped lift the company’s operating profit, leading to month-on-month growth, the company said in a statement.Pre-tax profit in the first five months of the year surged 8,246 percent from a year earlier to NT$872.7 million from NT$10.46 million, driven by higher sales volume and improved gross profit, the company said.
Rolls of steel are stacked in a China Steel Corp factory in Kaohsiung in an undated photograph.
Photo courtesy of China Steel Corp
China’s crude steel production dropped 4.1 percent year-over-year in the first 4 months of this year, causing an annual decline of 9.7 percent in steel exports, CSC said. Reduction in global steel supply gave a strong boost to steel prices in the second quarter, CSC said. However, global steel prices have entered a period of consolidation following a strong rally, the steelmaker said.
