It's double edged sword, lenglui, but seem CSCSteel benefited most from weakening RM while Mycron has been actively hedged its currency exposure, no so much gain or loss last year.
The reason Megasteel didn't ramp up production of CRC could be due to no money. The same reason Kinsteel couldn't increase production, and Perwaja stayed at 0 output, of HRC. Steel price recovery came too late for them. Creative destruction. In contrast, Ann Joo had surplus inventory to sell into the high prices.
based on news is temporary shut down due to no fresh order since Jan ~ Aug causing 1 shift running…
steel mill HRC shd preferred 24 hours running for production effiency and energy cost wise
running for CRC not worth as compete with other CRC manufacturer… it will be better running HRC which is monopoly biz… in addition no infringement to LIONCOR for monopoly case…possible backdoor resolve with CRC miller? settle
Congrats, WealthWizard, enough investors are persuaded by your articles to buy into Mycron and CSCstel, both major gainers today. Annjoo and Prestar there too. A strong Steel Day.
A senior manager from Megasteel said they need miracle to revive. It's true as Megasteel has been trying to return to profit for so many years with full supports from government but yet couldn't make it.
However, despite the protection, Megasteel continued to record huge losses. As at Dec 31 last year, Megasteel had racked up RM2.43bil in accumulated losses.
So far, Megasteel has gone through four debt restructurings, the latest of which in 2014, when it only had consent from two of its seven US dollar term loan creditors.
As at Dec 31 last year, Megasteel owed RM895.7mil to secured creditors, while unsecured creditors and suppliers were owed RM3.28bil.
I received an email from one of i3 fellow member, where a famous remisier in i3 has a buy call to his subscribers on Mycron with target price of RM1.61, using 5 methods of calculation.
wealthwizard did a good post...salute.... it is not easy to make metal vibrant.. looks like your metallic post already magnetized most of the metal peers...
This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on June 13, 2016.
KUALA LUMPUR: Choo Bee Metal Industries Bhd is among the beneficiaries of the government’s decision to knock down trade barrier for imported hot rolled coil (HRC) in the downstream segment.
The Ipoh-based flat steel product manufacturer had to stop exporting hollow and gas pipes to the United States, Australia and the Middle East in 2009 as the locally sourced HRC, which is its key raw material, had weakened the company’s competitiveness in the international market due to high input costs.
“We can’t export when we purchased raw materials from Megasteel [Sdn Bhd]. If our raw material prices are cheaper, we will be more competitive in terms of pricing,” the group’s chief financial officer Mark Tan said in a phone interview with The Edge Financial Daily.
Nonetheless, it is a different scenario now for Choo Bee after Megasteel, a 79%-owned subsidiary of Lion Corp Bhd, has suspended its production again since March this year due to financial and technical issues.
But how long will this situation last, most industry players, including Choo Bee, have no clue to that.
Tan opined that, based on Megasteel’s current financial situation, it could last until the end of the year or even longer. However, he pointed out that once Megasteel resumes operation, Choo Bee will still source from it if the prices are deemed reasonable.
According to Tan, Megasteel will normally charge RM400 to RM500 premium per tonne for HRC over international prices. Raw materials are Choo Bee’s biggest cost, which accounts for about 85% of the group’s operating expenses.
As of now, the group has started to source 80% of its raw materals from other Asian countries since Megasteel, the country’s sole HRC maker, has stopped production. This may in turn help Choo Bee resume its export business to the US and Australia after the third quarter this year, according to Tan.
The group also plans to allocate about RM20 million to expand its capacity for its main factory Pengkalan plant this year, which includes adding new production line. Total output is expected to increase by 20% when the new line is completed by 2017.
“We are upgrading and streamlining production processes to enhance production efficiency for our future growth,” he said.
Choo Bee’s current capacity could produce up to 9,000 tonnes a month when supply of raw materials is available. This works out to be about 108,000 tonnes of output a year.
With an additional tube mill line, Tan expected output to increase by 2,000 tonnes per month or 25,000 tonnes annually.
Tan, however, remained cautious about the group’s financial year ending Dec 31, 2016 (FY16) outlook, as steel prices remain volatile and stiff competition is squeezing margin.
Choo Bee achieved a net profit of RM2.85 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2016 (1QFY16), decreasing by 27.04% when compared with RM3.91 million in the previous year. Its revenue declined 30.47% to RM100.74 million from RM144.89 million in 1QFY15.
Steel prices that have come off again recently are also Tan’s concern. He foresaw steel prices to drop further after the rebound in recent months as supply levels remain high from idle capacity.
“Thus, we need to manage our cost, and make sure we are competitive in terms of raw material pricing,” he added.
Other than the resumption of export markets, Tan saw the government water pipe replacement project, which will be rolled out this year, as another potential earnings driver for Choo Bee.
Based on historical record, Tan estimated the government’s water pipe replacement project could provide a boost of about 30% of Cho Bee’s revenue.
FY15 was not a good year for Choo Bee. Its net profit halved to RM6 million. Besides lower average selling prices compressed profit margin, the group was also hit by unfavourable foreign exchange rate and impairment loss.
However, Choo Bee has a healthy balance sheet which has the attention of some fund managers. As at March 31, the group’s cash balance stood at RM62.93 million against borrowings of RM2.1 million. The rather big cash coffer has enabled Choo Bee to regularly declare dividends. Choo Bee declared a single-tier dividend of four sen per share for FY15.
Choo Bee’s share price staged a mild rally in March in tandem with the spike in interest in steel stocks in the past three months. Its share price climbed to a five-month high of RM1.61 in mid-April from RM1.34 in early March.
See something before many others see, know deeper before many others aware, look further when many others still look here & there, you will earn more than many others.
Try to look up to everyone that talk positive & negative, judge yourself, don't blame anyone if you don't get it.
Opportunities are always for those who are ready AND have ability to grab it.
This book is the result of the author's many years of experience and observation throughout his 26 years in the stockbroking industry. It was written for general public to learn to invest based on facts and not on fantasies or hearsay....
lenglui
163 posts
Posted by lenglui > 2016-09-12 20:52 | Report Abuse
Weakening in ringgit affect steel company?