POSCO Inter, Q3 Operating Profit 197 Billion KRW... Up 32.7% YoY

Sales at 9.0412 trillion KRW, down 1.2% YoY
Operating profit surpasses 585.4 billion KRW through Q3 this year compared to last year

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] POSCO International recorded an operating profit of 197 billion KRW in the third quarter. This represents a 32.7% increase compared to the same period last year.

POSCO International announced this on the 24th through the electronic disclosure system. Sales in the third quarter of this year amounted to 9.0412 trillion KRW, a 1.2% decrease compared to the same period last year, but operating profit increased by 32.7% to 197 billion KRW, and net profit rose by 63.5% to 112.8 billion KRW.

With this, POSCO International achieved sales of 30.0233 trillion KRW and operating profit of 733.7 billion KRW up to the third quarter, already surpassing last year's total operating profit of 585.4 billion KRW with ease.

POSCO International stated that although there were concerns about performance declines due to the global front-end industry contraction, solid results were achieved across all business divisions including energy, trading, and investment corporations, led by the energy sector's performance.

In the trading sector, sales of steel products related to the energy business such as wind power generation plates and API steel showed strong performance, and increased demand for automotive steel sheets and construction steel drove profit growth, recording an operating profit of 58.5 billion KRW.

The energy sector saw operating profit nearly triple compared to the same period last year, reaching 93.8 billion KRW, as raw material prices for crude oil and natural gas remained high since last year due to supply chain crises, resulting in increases in both sales volume and unit price revenue.

Additionally, in the investment corporation business, energy-related corporations such as the Narabri mine in Australia, Senex Energy, and Indonesian palm oil contributed operating profits of 20.6 billion KRW, 13.7 billion KRW, and 10 billion KRW respectively, bolstering the third quarter results.

POSCO International plans to continue driving growth momentum based on a diversified business portfolio while proactively managing risks to respond to the deteriorating Ukraine situation and global economic recession amid an unstable management environment.

In the steel sector, efforts will be focused on responding to production decreases caused by damage to the Pohang steelworks through the conversion of the Gwangyang steelworks and supply source substitution. In the energy sector, the company plans to steadily expand its business portfolio by signing long-term LNG sales contracts and securing additional exploration rights in Indonesia.

In the food business, POSCO International aims to secure profitability by expanding the front-end value chain based on existing investment assets. The company plans to expand into palm refining and biodiesel sectors based on Indonesian palm farms, and stabilize grain supply chains in North America and Australia through collaboration with local strategic partners, contributing to national food security.

A POSCO International official said, “The management environment is expected to become more challenging after the third quarter,” adding, “We will strengthen cash-focused management based on a balanced business portfolio and take thorough measures to manage financial risks such as bonds and inventory assets.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.