(Bloomberg) — ArcelorMittal SA expects growth in global steel demand to slow this year after record prices helped the company post its biggest annual profit in more than a decade.
Demand for steel — a key barometer for global economic growth — will rise by zero to 1% this year, compared with 4% in 2021, ArcelorMittal said in a statement on Thursday. Consumption in China is expected to continue to contract, while the pace of last year’s rebound in the U.S. and Europe will cool, it said.
The world’s biggest steelmaker outside of China had its best year since 2008. ArcelorMittal benefited as prices remained elevated since touching records last summer, even after supply chain issues inhibited demand.
Still, fourth-quarter earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $5.05 billion missed analyst estimates, after Europe’s energy crunch boosted costs and offset higher prices.
That didn’t deter ArcelorMittal from announcing a new capital return of $1 billion for the first half of this year. The company also proposed increasing its annual base dividend to 38 cents a share. That will require shareholder approval at the steelmaker’s annual general meeting in May.
Annual ebitda was $19.4 billion, ArcelorMittal said. That was in line with analysts’ estimates.
