16:25 London, 18:25 Helsinki, 21 February 2025 - Afarak Group SE ("Afarak" or "the Company") (LSE: AFRK, NASDAQ: AFAGR)
PROFIT WARNING - DECREASE OF TURNOVER AND EBITDA
Stock Exchange Release
The Board of Directors of Afarak Group SE ("Company") estimates, that the EBITDA for the full year 2024 is at around 2.6 Million Euro, which represents a decrease of 85% compared to 2023.
Furthermore, the turnover for the full year 2024 is expected to be at around 128.6 Million Euro which represents a decrease of 16.3%
In the Interim financial release H1 2024 published on 16 August 2024, the company stated the following expectations: We wish to provide our shareholders an update about these:
OUTLOOK FOR THE SECOND HALF OF 2024
On the low carbon ferro-chrome side, the sanctions against Russian material will only be fully implemented by end of 2024. Increased demand in aeronautics and defense applications should also start to show some positive impact on the supply and demand balances. Domestic price levels in China seem to have bottomed out as well. We expect further improvements in our cost structure during the second half-year and continue to develop new revenue streams in Europe. The market for low carbon ferro-chrome will be continuously competitive throughout the year.
Update:
The year 2024 was bad for the stainless steel industry, and signals are indicating that also 2025 could become another challenging year.
During 2024 the demand of stainless steel, particularly in Germany, remained low and also the entire European market remained subdued.
On the manufacturing side we successfully continued the reduction of our cost of production. We can generally confirm that the demand for the Low Carbon special grades, used for specialized applications, has increased and the market prices have shown some upside, but the price situation of the standard grades, specially due to the imports of Russian material from different Countries, bypassing the sanctions, has impacted our margins heavily in that segment.
The chrome ore market, on the other hand, is expected to remain strong. We have been finalizing investment decisions that will enable us to swiftly increase the output of chrome ore concentrates in South Africa.
Update: The third and especially fourth quarter saw an unexpected and significant decrease in Cr Ore prices, due to the weak economy in China. Since mid January, this trend has been reversed and the market signs for Cr Ore are more positive again.
Helsinki, February 21, 2025
AFARAK GROUP SE
Board of Directors
For additional information, please contact:
Guy Konsbruck, CEO, +356 2122 1566, guy.konsbruck@afarak.com
Financial reports and other investor information are available on the Company's website: www.afarak.com.
Afarak Group is a specialist alloy producer focused on delivering sustainable growth with a Speciality Alloys business in southern Europe and a FerroAlloys business in South Africa. The Company is listed on NASDAQ Helsinki (AFAGR) and the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange (AFRK).
Distribution:
NASDAQ Helsinki
London Stock Exchange
Main media
www.afarak.com
