ArcelorMittal, Luxembourg reported an increase in total steel shipments to 84.5mn mt in 2019 from 83.9mn mt in 2018. Shipments from Europe rose by 3.2pc. In the first half of 2019, the company shipped 44.6mn mt steel, up by 3.4pc from 43.1mn mt in the prior-year period.
The company’s sales declined by 7.1pc to $70.6bn in 2019 from $76bn in the prior year on the back of 9.6pc drop in average steel selling prices. Sales in the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) countries amounted to $18.6bn in the year, a drop of 8.7pc from 20.3bn in the prior year. Sales fell by 6.8pc to $37.7bn and by 14.1pc to $6.8bn in Europe and ACIS segments, respectively.
According to the company’s report, company’s crude steel production in 2019 was 21.9mn mt, down by 2.9pc from 22.6mn mt in 2018. Crude steel output declined in the first half of 2019 due to restart of a blast furnace in Mexico and power outage in Burns Harbour. Weak demand for steel also impacted production.