ArcelorMittal in a sombre mood as it returns to profit
ARCELORMITTAL, the world’s largest steelmaker, dampened recovery expectations yesterday with a muted forecast for the final three months of 2009 after a return to profit in the third quarter.
The firm, which produces three times more steel than nearest rival Nippon and holds nearly eight per cent of the global market, said it expected its much-watched core profit to be between $2.0bn (£1.3bn) and $2.4bn in the fourth quarter.
The mid-point would be a near 40 per cent improvement on the third quarter, but some 20 per cent down on already depressed year-earlier levels and below the average analyst expectation of around $2.5bn.
“I think the market may take the fourth quarter outlook as indicating potential downside risk for 2010 estimates,” said Andrew Snowdowne, an analyst at UBS that has a “Neutral” rating on the stock.
The steel industry is often seen as a broad gauge of economic strength, and shares in US rivals Steel Corp and AK Steel fell after they reported stronger than expected third-quarter results but reiterated gloomy short-term views.
ArcelorMittal chief executive Lakshmi Mittal said the company had seen the first signs of recovery.