ArcelorMittal, the world's second-largest steelmaker, reported on 11 February that its crude steel production fell 20.4 percent in 2020 to 71.5 million tonnes, as the pandemic cut demand and the group sold its US assets. Shipments dropped 18.2 percent to 69.1 million tonnes. Revenue fell to $53.3 billion, and the company posted a net loss of $0.7 billion for the year, although the fourth quarter brought a sharp recovery, with core profit of $1.73 billion, nearly double the third quarter. Net debt ended the year at $6.4 billion, the lowest since the 2006 merger that created the group. On the same day the board appointed Aditya Mittal, previously president, chief financial officer and head of the European business, as chief executive. His father Lakshmi Mittal, who founded the company in 1976, became executive chairman. The group said it expected steel demand to grow by 4.5 to 5.5 percent in 2021 and pointed to its new green steel products as a sign of the direction under the new chief executive.
Source: MetalMiner — https://agmetalminer.com/2021/02/17/arcelormittal-steel-output-drops-by-one-fifth-in-2020/
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