The German industrial conglomerate ThyssenKrupp reported on Tuesday a new net annual loss for its staggered 2023/2024 financial year, in full reflection on its restructuring and the persistent crisis in its steel division.
The Essen group was weighed down by ‘significantly weaker demand’ in the automotive industry, engineering and construction, leading to a loss of 1.5 billion euros (1.4 billion francs) after 2 billion during the previous financial year.
The steel division, which concentrates the setbacks of the group in crisis, saw its turnover drop by 18%, to 10.7 billion euros, weakened by competition from steel from China and the rise in prices. energy costs in Germany.
The group’s main source of income, the branch specializing in materials, also fell by 11%.
Both weigh on the group’s overall sales, down 7% to 35 billion euros.
On the other hand, decarbonization technologies (+19%) and the submarine subsidiary TKMS (+16%) improved their turnover.
Weak global demand notably resulted in an 11% decline in the group’s orders, to 32.8 billion euros, to which only submarines remained impervious, with an increase of 53% in orders.
Return to profits
The 2023/2024 financial year, completed at the end of September, was “a year of transition towards the achievement of our medium-term financial objectives, even in a difficult context”, assures boss Miguel Lopez in a press release.
For the next financial year, the Essen group expects to come out of the red, with an expected net profit of between 100 and 500 million euros.
The conglomerate expects sales growth of up to 3%, thanks to a ‘stabilization of demand in the second half’ in suffering sectors, notably steel.
ThyssenKrupp wants to present before the end of 2024 a restructuring plan for its steel branch, weighed down by rising energy costs and massive imports of low-cost Chinese steel.
In April, this historic division which employs 27,000 people was acquired 20% by the EPCG holding of billionaire Daniel Kretinsky, to the anger of the unions.
At the end of the summer, his former boss and several members of the supervisory board resigned in protest against boss Miguel Lopez.
The group of 100,000 people is considering giving up certain activities.
According to the German newspaper Handelsblatt, ThyssenKrupp could come to a vast dismantling, separating itself from its steel branch, from TKMS, and even from its activities in materials, automobiles and construction.
/ATS
