German industrial giant Thyssenkrupp posts huge loss

German industrial giant Thyssenkrupp today posted an annual loss of 649 million euros (USD 768 million) for the year ending September, due mainly to a one- off charge related to the sale of Brazilian steel mill CSA. Thyssenkrupp, which makes products ranging from submarines to car parts to elevators, had issued a profit warning in May about the exceptional charge. Nevertheless, its annual loss was wider than the 554 million-euro loss predicted by analysts from the financial service Factset. But the group posted sales of 43 billion euros, up nine percent, that beat analyst expectations. Over the financial year ending September 2017, orders rose 18 per cent to 44 billion euros, dragged up by demand for elevators and industrial components. “The past fiscal year was a year of important decisions,” said the group’s chief executive Heinrich Hiesinger. “The sale of the Brazilian steel mill CSA and the memorandum of understanding on a joint venture of our European steel activities with Tata Steel created strategic clarity.” Hiesinger, who is due to give a press conference on the annual results from 0900 GMT (1430 IST), did not give further details about the disputed merger with India’s Tata. The two steel giants had agreed to join forces in the hopes of boosting their resilience against a flood of subsidised Chinese steel that has roiled western markets. But workers and politicians are concerned about 4,000 jobs in production and administration that hang in the balance. Thousands of workers are expected to join a call by metal works union IG Metall to protest at the Thyssenkrupp’s Andernach site in western Germany.