Krakatau reduces net loss

IDX-listed steel maker PT Krakatau Steel Tbk saw its net loss in the first nine months of this year shrank by 28.42 percent to US$114.70 million compared to $160.24 million in the corresponding period of last year, Investor Daily reported on Tuesday.

The paper quoted Krakatau President Director Sukandar as saying that this was a result of higher production and efficiency measures. He said that much of the losses were contributed by subsidiary such as PT Krakatau Posco and foreign exchange losses.

Sukandar said that in the January-September period of this year, the company?s sales volume increased by 22.25 percent to 1.68 million tons, year-on-year.

He said that production of hot rolled coils (HRC) increased by 20.76 percent to 891,000 tons, cold rolled coils by 6.49 percent to 409,000 tons, and steel pipe products by 61.38 percent to 60.3 million tons.

Sukandar is optimistic that sales will further increase as the government accelerates infrastructure projects. (*)