TimkenSteel terminates chief executive

Ohio-based alloy steelmaker TimkenSteel fired chief executive Ward Timken Jr., who had led the company since it was formed in 2014.

Timken Jr., who is related to the founder of the original Timken company, was terminated without cause yesterday, according to a statement from the steelmaker.

The company has had four straight years of losses, only turning a profit in 2014. The company lost $200,000 in the first half of 2019.

While TimkenSteel produces 2mn st/yr of special bar quality (SBQ) steel products, the overall US steel market has seen prices fall in 2019. The latest Argus weekly domestic US hot-rolled coil (HRC) index fell to $538/st yesterday, down by 10pc compared to a recent high of $599/st in August.

Timken Jr. had run TimkenSteel since its spinoff from the Timken Company in 2014. The steel company was then taken public.

Terry Dunlap has been named interim chief executive and president. He has served on the board since August 2015, and previously spent 31 years with specialty steelmaker Allegheny Technologies, most recently with that company's flat-rolled products group.

TimkenSteel's stock price has fallen by 40pc since the beginning of the year to close at $5.86/share yesterday.