(LEAD) POSCO's net nosedives 60.3 pct in Q3

All News 17:01 October 23, 2014

(ATTN: RECASTS lead;UPDATES with more details from para 3; ADDS photo)

SEOUL, Oct. 23 (Yonhap) -- POSCO, South Korea's top steelmaker, said Thursday its third-quarter net income nosedived from a year ago, mainly due to the appreciation of the South Korean won against the U.S. dollar.

Net profit stood at 224 billion won (US$212.2 million) in the July-September period, down a sharp 60.3 percent compared to 564.02 billion won a year earlier, POSCO said in a regulatory filing.

Sales, however, rose a solid 7.4 percent to 16.27 trillion won in the three-month period with operating profit advancing 38.9 percent to 878.7 billion won.

The figures include earnings from POSCO and its units such as Daewoo International Corp.

"The poor bottom line was caused by the strong won in the third quarter that exposed the company to various exchange losses," a corporate source said.

POSCO, which has been concentrating on core business areas this year, said its steel and energy operations have done well.

It said its integrated steel mill in Indonesia, reached an operational rate of 82 percent, that pushed up sales numbers for the plant. POSCO said it plant in India, posted operating profits in the third quarter.

The company said, in particular, sales of plates used by automobiles surged 17 percent on-year, while its earnings in so-called solutions marketing moved up 59 percent, to contribute to overall sales.

The steelmaker said at present pace, global sales of plates made by POSCO that will be used on cars could reach as high as 817 tons this year.

The company then said sales of its steel coil products helped sales and operating profits.

As for its fourth-quarter business conditions, POSCO said worldwide demand for steel products may move up in the fourth quarter, fueled by carmakers.

"POSCO is committed to making more value-added products that can meet the needs of companies, while take a leading role in meeting Seoul's goals to reduce greenhouse gases," it said

Shares of POSCO rose 0.47 percent to close at 321,500 won on the Seoul bourse versus 0.27 percent drop in benchmark KOSPI. The company released its third-quarter results after the market closed.