VOESTALPINE AG
voestalpine achieved a solid result in the first half of 2023/24 (
Over the reporting period, the economic momentum continued to slow down in
In a market environment that was challenging at times, voestalpine was able to demonstrate its strengths in the first half of 2023/24 with its focus on high-quality products, particularly for the mobility and energy industries.
The launch of greentec steel, voestalpine's ambitious step-by-step plan for a green steel production, recently represented an important step in the Group's future viability. The plan is for one blast furnace at each of the Linz and Donawitz sites to be replaced by a green electricity-powered electric arc furnace by 2027, resulting in a 30% reduction in carbon emissions. The official opening of the new high-tech stainless steel plant in Kapfenberg represented a further milestone for the future.
Development of revenue and earnings
After the voestalpine Group achieved record levels of revenue and earnings in the first half of the 2022/23 business year, weaker financial performance indicators were recorded when compared year over year. Specifically, revenue decreased by 8.4% from
Net financial income (financial income less finance costs) fell from
The gearing ratio (net financial debt as a percentage of equity) fell year over year from 32.7% to 26.6% as of
Outlook
The economic slowdown that has been expected for almost a year arrived in some areas of the voestalpine Group in the first half of the business year 2023/24, particularly in the second quarter.
As expected, the market environment in the construction, mechanical engineering, and consumer goods industries has weakened. From today's perspective, the current situation is expected to continue in the second half of the business year 2023/24 and thus we assume no substantial improvement in demand in these segments. This means stagnating demand at a subdued level.
From today's perspective, the automotive industry should remain largely robust in the second half of 2023/24. Although the high order backlogs built up as a result of the pandemic are increasingly being processed by car manufacturers, overall development is expected to remain largely stable until the end of the current business year.
The conventional energy sector (oil and natural gas) lost momentum on the price side in the course of the first half of the business year 2023/24, but this is due to the reduction of material bottlenecks and not to market weakness. Demand for voestalpine products for the oil and natural gas industry has consequently normalized. A largely stable development can be anticipated for the second half of 2023/24. The good market environment in the renewable energy sector (photovoltaics) is expected to continue for the remainder of the business year 2023/24.
In the area of railway systems, the current very good development is expected to continue for the remainder of the business year, although the usual seasonality over the Northern winter has to be taken into account.
The upward trend in the aerospace industry will also continue in the second half of the business year 2023/24.
The forecasts are therefore largely in line with previous assessments, although the economic outlook for
Therefore, assuming no massive economic distortions on account of the central banks' interest rate policies or geopolitical escalation scenarios, the Management Board of
The impact of current geopolitical developments remains difficult to assess. However, it is clear that the war in
The voestalpine Group
voestalpine is a globally leading steel and technology group with a unique combination of materials and processing expertise. voestalpine, which operates globally, has around 500 Group companies and locations in more than 50 countries on all five continents. It has been listed on the
Contact:
Peter Felsbach
Tel: +43/50304/15-2090
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