Tata Steel today reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 2,127.23 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2015 hit by subdued demand in India as well as higher regulatory costs and a strong British pound.
Mumbai-based firm had a net profit of Rs 157.11 crore in the year-ago period.
Total consolidated income of the steel maker declined by 17 per cent to Rs 28,039 crore in the October-December quarter of this fiscal, from Rs 33,633 crore during the same quarter in 2014-15, Tata Steel said in a BSE filing.
Its total expenses more than doubled to Rs 1,224.90 crore from Rs 578 crore during the quarter under review.
Steel deliveries of the company rose marginally to 6.37 million tonnes (MT) in the December quarter in 2015-16, from 6.29 MT during the same quarter in 2014-15.
"Indian steel demand remained subdued post monsoon quarter due to sluggish uptick across key steel consuming sectors like construction, general engineering and infrastructure," Tata Steel said.
Rural demand also remained muted. Oversupply in global steel markets coupled with relative stability of Indian rupee versus dollar as compared to other and currencies has made India a favoured import destination, it added.
On its European operations, the firm said: "Surging imports into Europe exerted further pressure on margins in the last quarter.
"The unprecedented market conditions, made worse by the UK's regulatory costs and strong pound, led to announcements to reduce jobs and mothball assets in the UK - part of an ongoing transformation programme."
Tata Steel's Managing Director India and South East Asia T V Narendran said: "Steel markets in India have been affected by depressed international steel prices and predatory imports. Tepid demand among steel consuming sectors has further exacerbated the problem."
To realign Tata Steel with new market realities, the firm is sharpening focus on effective management of costs. It will also continue to invest in its marketing franchise and in increasing the share of value added products, he added.
Tata Steel in Europe CEO and Managing Director Karl Ulrich Kohler said: "This perfect storm (imports) caused the deterioration of our financial performance in the last quarter and led to us announcing restructuring in the UK where our operations also face higher regulatory costs."
Growing European steel demand continues to be undermined by a flood of imports. Chinese steel shipments into Europe leapt over 50 per cent last year, while imports from Russia and South Korea jumped 25 per cent and 30 per cent, respectively, he added.
Kohler said European steel association has identified
that Chinese steel is being exported at prices below the cost of production. This unfair trade is undercutting domestic producers and harming European steel industry which employs thousands of people.
"That's why we are calling on the European Commission and national governments to speed up and strengthen action against unfair trade," he added.
On restructuring he said: "These changes will continue to be a core focus in a bid to improve our competitiveness and enable us to concentrate on supplying higher-value products to customers."
Tata Steel Group Executive Director (Finance and Corporate) Koushik Chatterjee said current business conditions for the global steel industry are challenging with confluence of elevated imports across regions, currency headwinds and depressed market sentiments affecting group's profitability.
"We are witnessing significant unfairly priced imports into countries like the UK, India and South East Asia which has disrupted the pricing discipline in most markets," he added.
The Tata Steel Group has embarked on significant cost rationalisation programme including fixed cost reduction, right sizing of manpower, productivity management and enriching product mix across all geographies.
These programmes are expected to enhance the sustainable profitability profile of the company.
"Tata Steel has also undertaken significant portfolio restructuring and will continue to pursue the same in the future," he said.
During the quarter, the firm successfully refinanced USD 1.5 billion of debt which has given it further flexibility and extended tenure while reducing costs.
"Our liquidity remains strong at Rs 18,600 crore apart from the undrawn project finance facilities at Kalinganagar. The Group's leverage remain stable despite the ongoing capex of Rs 8,800 crore in April-December 2015-16, largely towards our Kalinganagar Project in Odisha," Chatterjee said.
Tata Steel UK has announced cost-saving proposals to improve the competitiveness of its UK business. Plate mills in Scunthorpe, Dalzell and Clydebridge will be mothballed while one of the two coke ovens at the Scunthorpe steelworks will be closed, the firm said.
"Along with earlier restructurings announced this year the proposed plan would lead to about 3,000 job losses," it added.
As a part of its programme to enhance productivity in the future, Tata Steel India announced an employee separation programme during the current fiscal. 1,171 employees have been separated till January 2016, it said.
NatSteel Holdings has also completed separation of 300 people in China.
