SSAB Americas expects stable steel shipments in 3Q

The US subsidiary of Swedish steelmaker SSAB expects steel shipments in the third quarter to remain at similar levels as the prior three months.

The company expects demand for heavy plate in North America to be "relatively good" during the third quarter and shipments to be in line with the second quarter, while prices are expected to fall from second-quarter levels.

SSAB said that in the second quarter North American distributors were cautious about buying steel and focused on destocking. Prices for heavy plate "decreased rapidly" in the second quarter.

SSAB Americas shipped 475,000 metric tons (524,000 short tons) in the second quarter, a 6.7pc decline from the second quarter of 2018. The second-quarter figure marked a 5pc decline from the first quarter.

Second-quarter crude steel production for SSAB Americas increased by 1.3pc to 637,000t from the second quarter of 2018. It was off by 2.6pc from the first quarter.

SSAB Americas' operating profit in the second quarter was Skr872mn ($93.1mn), up from Skr365mn in the same period of 2018.

SSAB Americas operates electric arc-furnace (EAF) based plate mills in Montpelier, Iowa, and north of Mobile, Alabama.