(Bloomberg) -- ArcelorMittal SA's third-quarter profit fell as steel prices declined in key markets due to weaker demand.
The world's top steelmaker outside of China reported a 28% decline in earnings from the previous quarter, better than analysts expected. Margins and sales were squeezed as the manufacturing and construction sectors languished. The company's shares fell as much as 2% in Amsterdam.
The steel industry — a proxy for the global economy — is suffering from a slump in demand as tighter monetary policy and China's weak post-pandemic recovery hit the consumption of raw materials. Furnaces across Europe, where ArcelorMittal has the bulk of its production, have been idled, while rival steelmakers announced job cuts in recent weeks.
Still, ArcelorMittal left its forecast for 2023 steel consumption outside China unchanged, after cutting its projection in July. It sees European steel consumption toward the bottom end of its previous forecast.
“The company remains positive on the medium/long-term steel demand outlook,” ArcelorMittal said in a statement on Thursday.
Safety Audit
ArcelorMittal has particular difficulties of its own. The firm is set to lose its steel plants and mines in Kazakhstan following an accident that killed 46 people. Meanwhile, its giant Ukrainian mill has faced frequent disruption since Russia invaded the country.
The company is providing financial support to the families and colleagues of those who died in the accident at the Kostenko coal mine in Kazakhstan. It's also commissioning a third party audit of its safety practices.
The steel giant is still seeking new assets elsewhere. It's in the running to buy United States Steel Corp., which would be the firm's biggest deal since the merger that created ArcelorMittal almost two decades ago.
The company reported third quarter earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $1.87 billion.
What Bloomberg Intelligence Says
“ArcelorMittal's better than-expected 3Q Ebitda — 3% above company consensus — could offer temporary relief for a stock that has been weighed down by demand headwinds and a deadly accident in Kazakhstan. But the downgraded outlook for European steel demand, which may shrink by more than 0.5% in 2023, and guidance that shipments will be flat this year, suggest another leg down for 4Q earnings.”
— Grant Sporre and Alon Olsha, BI metals and mining analysts
Click here to read the full research note
(Updates with shares in second paragraph)
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