Anyang Steel Turned a Profit in Q1, Signs of Recovery in the Steel Industry?

Is the steel industry showing signs of recovery? Anyang Iron & Steel (600569.SH) turned a profit in Q1 this year after 13 consecutive quarters of losses.

In this regard, a company representative told Cailian Press that, on one hand, the overall trend of the steel industry in Q1 was positive, and on the other hand, a series of reform measures implemented by the company have shown results.

Anyang Iron & Steel announced this evening that in Q1 this year, the company is expected to achieve a net profit attributable to shareholders of the publicly listed firm of around 18.1 million yuan, turning a profit YoY, with a net profit attributable to shareholders after deducting non-recurring gains and losses of approximately 8.2 million yuan.

In 2024, the company achieved operating revenue of 29.64 billion yuan, a YoY decline of 29.68%, with a net profit attributable to the parent company of -3.271 billion yuan, and a net profit after deducting non-recurring gains and losses as low as -3.316 billion yuan.

The company representative stated that in 2024, due to significant investments in environmental protection facility construction, production line transformation, and production cuts, the company's performance was impacted by 1 billion to 1.2 billion yuan. Coupled with the downward trend in the industry and other multiple factors, the company's performance in 2024 suffered severe losses.

After entering 2025, both the industry environment and the company's operations have shown positive changes. The aforementioned company representative told Cailian Press that the market situation in Q1 improved month by month, creating a favorable external environment for Anyang Iron & Steel's performance improvement. Additionally, with the completion of environmental protection and production line transformation this year, the company's production and operational efficiency has significantly improved, with some product production indicators, such as special steel, reaching historical highs.

Specifically, in terms of production and operations, the company has continuously optimized major production indicators through integrated management of iron front and steel rear, as well as the long-term stable operation of the production system. At the same time, the company's cost reduction and efficiency improvement efforts have also achieved good results, with reductions in energy costs, logistics costs, and capital occupation costs.

Furthermore, in Q1, Anyang Iron & Steel promoted the strategy of special steel transformation and quality improvement, continuously strengthening the development layout of "five major special steels," "five major characteristic steels," and "three 10,000 mt industrial wire rods" at the Anyang base, as well as advancing the wide and thick plate project at the Zhoukou base. The proportion of special steel production and sales increased, leading to a significant YoY improvement in the company's overall efficiency.

However, it is worth noting that the "foundation" for the steel industry's recovery is not yet fully solidified.

Industry insiders were initially optimistic about the industry's operating trend in April, but the sudden tariff war may have a certain impact on the steel industry. The decline in ferrous metals series futures prices has driven down spot prices, with steel market prices falling by about 100 yuan/mt in the short term. The rapid decline in finished product spot prices may have a significant impact on the short-term performance of steel companies.