ArcelorMittal Slips To Loss In Q3; Cuts 2019 Steel Shipments Outlook

(RTTNews) - ArcelorMittal (MT) recorded that its third-quarter net loss attributable to equity holders of the parent was $539 million or $0.53 loss per share, compared to a net income of $899 million or $0.88 per share in the previous year.

Lakshmi Mittal, ArcelorMittal Chairman and CEO, said, "As anticipated, we continued to face tough market conditions in the third quarter, characterized by low steel prices coupled with high raw material costs."

Operating income for the quarter dropped to $297 million from the prior year's $1.6 billion hurt by lower shipment volumes and negative pricecost effect in the steel segments and lower market price iron ore shipments and lower iron ore premia in the mining segment.

Sales for the quarter declined to $16.6 billion from last year's primarily due to lower average steel selling prices (-11.1%), lower steel shipments (-1.7%) and lower market-priced iron ore shipments (-1.5%) offset in part by higher seaborne iron ore reference prices (+52.6%).

Total steel shipments in the latest-quarter were 1.7% lower as compared with 20.5 million tonnes last year. Excluding the impact of the ArcelorMittal Italia acquisition net of the remedy asset sales, steel shipments were 1.6% lower compared to the prior year.

For 2019, the company now expects steel shipments to be stable compared to the prior year. It previously expected an increase in steel shipments from last year.