Steel Mills

NLMK USA Q3 Earnings Balloon on High Prices, Strong Demand

Written by David Schollaert

October 21, 2021

NLMK USA posted record third-quarter earnings supported by strong downstream demand and historically high steel prices. The U.S. subsidiary of NLMK Group – Russia’s largest steelmaker – reported EBITDA of $354 million in the third quarter, a 66% surge from the previous high mark of $213 million in the second quarter and a big jump from the $12 million loss reported in third-quarter 2020.

NLMK

NLMK USA’s profits escalated as revenue surged to $1.04 billion in the third quarter, up 49% from $699 million in the second quarter and nearly five times higher than $223 million in the third quarter of last year, according to earnings data released on Thursday, Oct. 21. As a result, NLMK USA’s share increased to 25% of the global company’s total revenue, the steelmaker said.

The outstanding results by NLMK’s U.S. division were shared across NLMK Group’s global operations.

“In Q3 2021, average steel prices grew across all key sales markets. In the U.S., prices hit new highs,” said Shamil Kurmashov, NLMK Group’s CFO. “Starting from the middle of the quarter, demand growth in export markets slowed down, coupled with the ongoing recovery of local production and imports. The decrease in steel production and declining exports in China supported global steel prices, leading to an adjustment of iron ore prices at the same time”

NLMK USA operates an EAF steel mill in Portage, Ind., a hot strip mill and cold reduction mill in Farrell, Pa., and a coating facility in Sharon, Pa.

In total, the NLMK Group recorded profits of $1.62 billion in the third quarter, up 19% from $1.36 billion in the second quarter, and up more than five-fold from $312 million in the third quarter of 2020.

By David Schollaert, David@SteelMarketUpdate.com

David Schollaert

David Schollaert is deputy editor-in-chief for Steel Market Update. David joined SMU after more than a decade in the metals and mining industry in a myriad of different roles. Much of his early experience and expertise were within the coverage and analysis of steel-making raw materials and served previously as senior editor of the CRU Prices Service. Most recently, however, before his return to market analysis, David held roles as a metals buyer and an operations manager for raw material suppliers. He can be contacted at david@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-720-1008.

Read more from David Schollaert

Latest in Steel Mills