SeAH Besteel Holdings(001430), boosted by expanded sales of specialty steel for defense and energy and stainless steel for semiconductor equipment and energy, increased its second-quarter sales and operating profit by double digits this year.
SeAH Besteel Holdings said on the 30th that second-quarter consolidation sales were 1.1363 trillion won and operating profit was 60.5 billion won. Compared with a year earlier, sales rose 17.8% and operating profit rose 35.9%. Net profit was 35.2 billion won, up 93.4%.
It also beat market expectations. The securities consensus compiled by FnGuide was sales of 1.0247 trillion won and operating profit of 51 billion won. Actual sales and operating profit exceeded the forecasts by 10.9% and 18.6%, respectively.
At the core affiliate SeAH Besteel, standalone sales were 599 billion won and operating profit was 24.6 billion won, up 10.6% and 11.5%, respectively, from a year earlier. The market environment was unfavorable as low-priced Chinese specialty steel bars increased in inflow, but sales of products for oil and gas, defense, and renewable energy expanded. Fixed cost reductions from higher sales volume and price hikes reflecting rising scrap prices also contributed to improved profit.
Compared with the previous quarter, SeAH Besteel's sales increased 13.4% and operating profit jumped 129.5%. As it entered the seasonal peak, demand and sales volume recovered, with the effect of higher selling prices added. The "recovery in specialty steel sales" pertains to the quarter-over-quarter trend, while the year-over-year improvement was mainly driven by expanded sales targeting specific industries such as defense and energy.
SeAH Changwon Integrated Special Steel posted sales of 430.5 billion won and operating profit of 34.4 billion won. Those were up 15.9% and 81.7%, respectively, from a year earlier. Overall stainless demand was sluggish, but demand increased for products for semiconductor equipment on the back of expanded investment in artificial intelligence data centers and for energy and power applications. A higher share of high-margin products and price increases also supported results.
SeAH Aerospace and Defense recorded sales of 35.5 billion won, up 6.2% from a year earlier, but operating profit fell 4.5% to 6.3 billion won. Higher aluminum prices and supply chain instability increased cost pressures.
SeAH Besteel Holdings plans to expand sales of specialty steel parts for eco-friendly and hybrid vehicles in the second half and improve profitability through anti-dumping measures on Chinese specialty steel bars and business expansion at its U.S. special alloy manufacturing unit SeAH Superalloy Technologies.