Nucor warns of lower scrap processing performance

United States – Major US steelmaker Nucor expects its fourth-quarter earnings to be comparable with those of the corresponding period of last year. However, its raw materials segment is very likely to be negatively impacted by an anticipated operating loss of around US$ 30 million at Nucor Steel Louisiana and ‘an expected decrease in the performance of our scrap processing business’, it says in a statement.

Production operations at Nucor Steel Louisiana have remained suspended since an equipment failure relating to the process gas heater occurred on November 2. Necessary repairs are taking place but the facility is unlikely to be operational until late in the first quarter of next year, it adds.

Nucor′s steel mills are continuing to come under pressure from ′exceptionally′ high levels of imports. They have experienced ′some margin compression′ when compared to the third quarter of 2014 as well as ′a decrease in volume′.

For more information, visit: www.nucor.com