PRETORIA, Feb 6 – ArcelorMittal South Africa reported a narrower full year loss in 2025 after shutting its long steel operations and benefiting from lower raw material costs, easing pressure from a difficult operating environment.
The company posted a headline loss of 3.355 billion rand ($207.9 million) for the year ended December 2025. That compares with a loss of 5.1 billion rand a year earlier, marking a 34 percent improvement.
Despite the improvement, the South African unit of global steelmaker ArcelorMittal continued to face headwinds. Weak domestic demand, high electricity costs and competition from scrap based mini mills and imported steel, particularly from China, weighed on performance during the year.
As a result, production and sales declined. Crude steel output fell 12 percent to 2.3 million metric tons, while sales volumes dropped to 2.0 million metric tons. At the same time, realised steel prices declined by 5 percent in rand terms and by 3 percent in U.S. dollar terms, reflecting softer market conditions.
However, the closure of the loss making long steel business helped stabilise earnings. The company shut the operations last year to curb losses after the segment recorded a negative EBITDA of 1.7 billion rand in 2024. Following the shutdown, the impact of the long steel business on EBITDA was neutral in 2025, the company said.
Meanwhile, at group level, ArcelorMittal reported earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of $1.59 billion for the fourth quarter. That figure exceeded analysts’ average estimate of $1.51 billion, according to company data.
In addition, ArcelorMittal South Africa said it remains in discussions with the state owned Industrial Development Corporation over a potential transaction. The company did not provide details, although Bloomberg has reported that the IDC, which holds an 8.2 percent stake, has resumed talks after negotiations stalled last year.
The company said the outcome of the discussions could influence its outlook for 2026.
