Hyundai Steel said on the 30th that its operating profit on a consolidation basis last year was 219.2 billion won, up 37.4% from a year earlier, according to preliminary figures.
Sales fell 2.1% in the same period to 22.7332 trillion won, and net profit fell 84.1% to 1.4 billion won, according to preliminary figures.
Hyundai Steel said domestic construction conditions were sluggish and sales inched down due to the spread of global protectionism, but operating profit increased as prices of key raw materials, including iron ore and coal, and export freight rates fell.
It also said it continued efforts to improve financial soundness and recorded a debt ratio of 73.6%, down 6.1 percentage points from a year earlier.
Hyundai Steel plans to expand sales of high-value-added products and focus on securing new demand this year to improve profitability.
To that end, it plans to begin mass production of third-generation steel sheets, which combine high formability, high strength, and lightweight characteristics, in the first quarter of this year, and to fully operate the Pune SSC in India, completed in the third quarter of last year, to push for expansion of global product sales.
It will also actively respond to demand for heavy plate for offshore wind power by completing development and certification of ultra-thick, high-strength material (heavy plate 100 mm or thicker) and making the initial supply to the Shinan Ui offshore wind project.
In addition, it will expand sales of steel for nuclear power and steadily push ahead with building an electric arc furnace steel mill in the United States to expand local supply of automotive steel sheets. Through this, it plans to respond to increasing demand from automakers for low-carbon materials.
The U.S. electric arc furnace steel mill project centers on building an integrated steel mill in Ascension Parish, Louisiana, capable of everything from raw material production facilities to product rolling, to produce 2.7 million tons a year, including 1.8 million tons of automotive steel sheets.
A Hyundai Steel official said, "Under the vision 'Strength for MOVE' this year, we will expand sales of automotive steel sheets and low-carbon products, and strengthen the competitiveness and market leadership of long and shaped steel products to secure the fundamental competitiveness of a sustainable steel business."