POSCO Holdings Inc. said Wednesday its third-quarter net income dropped 9.1 percent on-year due to a slump in the global steel industry and stagnation of electric vehicle demand. The steel giant said in a regulatory filing that net income for the July-September period reached 497 billion won (US$359.6 million), down 9.1 percent from a year earlier. Operating income for the July-September period fell 38.3 percent on-year to 740 billion won. Sales also decreased 3.4 percent to 18.32 trillion won. Despite weakened results, POSCO Holdings still managed to beat market expectations. The average estimate of net profit by analysts stood at 396 billion won, according to a survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency. Per business division, POSCO reported a 39.8 percent drop in operating profit in its steel division. Despite increased production and sales supported by the higher number of blast furnaces, operating profit declined due to reduced margins caused by weak demand. For its ove rseas business, third-quarter operating profit plunged 90.1 percent to 7 billion won due to the continued demand slowdown in China. To address its earnings slump, POSCO Holdings said it was committed to continue investing in its core business pillars to secure a foothold in future growth markets. "We plan to continue investing in our two core business areas -- steel and secondary battery materials -- to overcome challenging market conditions and secure future growth markets," it said. POSCO Holdings also plans to accelerate restructuring efforts by expanding the number of low-profit businesses and non-core assets targeted for divestment from 120 to 125, aiming to streamline operations and enhance profitability. Source: Yonhap News Agency
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