Cape Town - ArcelorMittal South Africa called for more state support for the steel sector as it reported a loss of R450 million for the six months to the end of June.
This is a hefty increase on the loss of R111 million recorded for the corresponding period a year before.
The company acknowledged the support provided by government, in particular the import tariffs on 10 locally produced products and the instructions issued by Treasury on minimum local content thresholds on a number of products, including solar water heater components, rail rolling stock and electric cables.
However, the company said: “South Africa's steel sector remains vulnerable and still needs government support.”
The company said it had launched initiatives across operations to improve efficiencies and optimise costs. It said the time management system introduced at all South African operations, together with the strategic initiative at Vanderbijlpark Works were expected to yield material savings over the next 18 months.
ArcelorMittal said total sales volumes were up by 10 percent on the comparative period in 2015, primarily due to the import duties, market restocking and the closure of competitor Evraz Highveld Steel.
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An increase in local sales of 15 percent had been partially offset by a 5 percent decrease in export sales, and revenue was up 16 percent to R17 billion in the period.
The headline loss per share came in at 45 cents, up from 27 cents per share last time. No dividend was declared.
AFRICAN NEWS AGENCY