Berliner Tageszeitung - Thyssenkrupp cuts sales outlook on Mideast war

Sales at the company were now expected to be flat or fall by up to three percent for the year, Thyssenkrupp said, down from a previous forecast range of a two-percent fall to one-percent growth.

"The anticipated recovery of the global economy has been dampened significantly," Thyssenkrupp said in its second-quarter report.

"As well as the war in Ukraine, the main factors are the escalation of the Iran conflict which has triggered a substantial energy price shock and clouded economic prospects worldwide."

Industrial firms such as Thyssenkrupp, a vast conglomerate with interests in steel, machinery and car parts, are often seen as bellwethers for the global economy that rise and fall with worldwide activity.

Thyssenkrupp's net profit for the year is still seen at between minus 800 million euros (minus $940 million) and minus 400 million euros, the firm said, with the figure rising to between plus 500 million and plus 900 million euros once certain expenses like tax and one-off restructuring costs are stripped out.

Hammered by exorbitant energy costs and cheaper Asian competition, Thyssenkrupp's steel unit said in November 2024 it would seek to cut or outsource 11,000 jobs by 2030 -- about 40 percent of its workforce.

The conglomerate was in discussions with India's Jindal Steel about a potential sale of the unit, but these were paused earlier this month after the European Union said in April it would hike steel tariffs, helping protect steelmakers at the same time as hitting consumers.

Thyssenkrupp's second-quarter profit came in at minus 11 million euros, hit by the restructuring costs.

Without them, core profit rose to 198 million euros, from 19 million last year, boosted by cost cuts.

F. Burkhard--BTZ