POSCO Reports Operating Profit of 1.552 Trillion KRW in Q1... Earnings Improve with Market Recovery

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] POSCO has returned to operating profits in the 1 trillion KRW range in the first quarter of this year.

POSCO announced on the 12th that its consolidated operating profit for the first quarter increased by 120% year-on-year to 1.552 trillion KRW, and sales rose by 9.98% to 15.9969 trillion KRW. On a separate basis, operating profit was tentatively estimated at 1.0729 trillion KRW, up 134.2%, and sales increased by 11.9% to 7.8004 trillion KRW.

The consolidated quarterly operating profit exceeding 1.5 trillion KRW was recorded for the first time in 10 quarters since the third quarter of 2018, and it is the second largest amount in the past 10 years since the second quarter of 2011 (1.7 trillion KRW).

The sharp recovery in the steel industry drove POSCO's performance. With significant improvements in the performance of the headquarters and overseas steel subsidiaries, operating profit has settled back into the 1 trillion KRW range. In particular, due to the rise in steel product prices, it is expected that selling prices can be increased beyond the rise in costs, continuing the trend of performance improvement.

Meanwhile, POSCO has decided to provide quarterly earnings forecasts before holding investor briefings starting this year to enhance investment convenience, and plans to hold the first quarter investor briefing (conference call) on the 26th.