JSW Steel cuts output, loses money in quarter ending June 30

Mumbai-based JSW Steel Ltd. says its crude steel output dropped by 30 percent in the quarter ending June 30 compared with output in the same time frame in 2019. The steelmaker also has reported a loss of $1.46 billion Indian rupees ($19.5 million) for the quarter.

The quarter ending June 30 is the first in JSW Steel’s 2021 fiscal year. In addition to output being 30.2 percent lower compared with the same quarter in the prior fiscal year, it dropped 25.4 percent compared with the prior quarter as COVID-19 caused economic slowdowns in India and other JSW operating areas.

The company says its 2021 fiscal first quarter was “marked by formidable challenges of disrupted supply chains” and an “unparalleled drop in demand and activity levels” in its home market of India.

Regarding its United States operations, the company notes it has temporarily idled its electric arc furnace (EAF) mill in Ohio and says its plate and pipe mill in Texas lost $11 million in the most recent quarter. The company’s mill in Italy also lost 7 million euros ($8.2 million) in the 2021 fiscal year first quarter, according to JSW.

Regarding its outlook, JSW writes in notes accompanying its results, “Economic activities are picking up across the board” in India but adds that localized COVID-19-related lockdowns there remain “a key risk to sustain the pace of recovery.”