Japan-based JFE holdings expects its loss for the year ending March 2021 to be at JPY32bn, an improvement of JPY58bn from earlier estimates given in November 2020. The company expects its crude steel output to reach 22.7mn mt, a rise of 200,000mt over the previous forecast.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the company’s operations were hit in first half of the year. In the second half, however, economic and commercial activities in the country improved. Demand for steel, particularly in the automotive sector picked up, helping the company recover. JFE’s engineering segment performed well in the domestic market, particularly in the environmental sector and the infrastructure sector centered on steel structures, according to the company’s release.