Steel Mills

U.S. Steel Q2 Profits Dip on Lower Sheet Prices

July 27, 2023

U.S. Steel recorded lower profits in Q2’23 compared to Q2’22 on the heels of a drop in steel prices and a dip in shipments.

The Pittsburgh-based steelmaker reported net income of $477 million in Q2’23, down 51% from $978 million in Q2’22 on sales that fell 20% to $5.01 billion over the same period.

The company recorded shipments of 3.97 million tons in Q2’23, down 5% from 4.18 million tons in Q2’22, according to earnings figures released after market close on Thursday, July 27.

U.S. Steel

Fourth quarter ended June 30	2023	2022	% Change
Net sales	$5,008	$6,290	-20%
Net income (loss)	$477	$978	-51%
Per diluted share	$1.89	$3.42	-45%
Full year ended June 30
Net sales	$9,478	$11,524	-18%
Net income (loss)	$676	$1,860	-64%
Per diluted share	$2.67	$6.45	-59%

(in millions of dollars except per share)

One example of lower prices: U.S. Steel’s flat-rolled mills posted an average sales price of $1,088 per ton ($54.40 per cwt) in Q2’23, down 19% from $1,339 per ton in Q2’22.

U.S. Steel president and CEO David Burritt said it was nonetheless a “strong result” and stressed that the company continued to press forward with its growth plans.

Case in point: U.S. Steel is commissioning the non-grain oriented (NGO) electrical steel line at its Big River Steel electric-arc furnace (EAF) mill in Arkansas. The line is scheduled to start up later in the third quarter, Burritt said.

“Customer demand has been robust for our NGO steels, and we are pleased to announce that we’ve already secured our first customer orders in both industrial and electric vehicle markets,” he added.

The company, as is standard practice, did not name those customers.

Michael Cowden

Michael Cowden is managing editor for Steel Market Update. Cowden has covered the steel industry since 2007. He has since 2014 specialized in flat-rolled steel but has previously reported on steel long products, steel pipe and tube as well as aluminum. Before joining SMU, Cowden held reporting jobs at Fastmarkets AMM in Chicago - where he was involved in launching AMM's daily hot-rolled coil index, the Associated Press in Pittsburgh, and the Cambodia Daily in Phnom Penh. He has also worked as a copy editor and in marketing at the University of Chicago Press. Cowden has a BA in English from the University of Chicago and an MSJ journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Contact him at michael@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7872.