 |
Photo: POSCO Future M |
[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] POSCO Future M experienced a significant setback in Q4 of last year, reporting a loss due to the impact of a temporary slowdown in demand for electric vehicles (EVs). The drop in raw material prices, including lithium, and losses from inventory assets worsened profitability.
According to the electronic disclosure system (DART) on Monday, POSCO Future M's Q4 revenue dropped by 36.8% to 723.2 billion KRW, compared to 1.1458 trillion KRW in the same period last year. The company also recorded an operating loss of 41.3 billion KRW, marking its return to the red after three quarters of profit.
On an annual basis, the company barely avoided an overall loss, with total revenue and operating profit for the year standing at 3.6999 trillion KRW and 7 billion KRW, respectively. This represented a decrease of 22.3% and 98.0% compared to 2023, reflecting a significant downturn in performance.
The underperformance was attributed to the decline in prices of key products like cathode materials and weak sales of anode materials. Last year, cathode material sales dropped by 30.3% to 2.1856 trillion KRW, compared to 3.1401 trillion KRW the previous year. During the same period, anode material sales decreased by 30.4%, from 221.7 billion KRW to 154.3 billion KRW.
The slump in cathode materials was driven by a steep drop in metal prices, including a 68% decline in the price of lithium carbonate, a key raw material. As cathode manufacturers and battery producers set product prices based on metal prices at the time of sale, POSCO Future M found itself at a disadvantage, buying raw lithium at higher prices and selling finished products at lower prices, resulting in losses.
Moreover, some products, including N83 cathode materials, were left as unsold inventory, leading to a 43.6 billion KRW impairment loss from non-performing stocks, contributing to the operating loss.
AlphaBIZ Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
