Swedish steelmaker SSAB's European division swung to an operating loss in the third quarter, hit by lower prices, as the European Commission proposed new measures to protect the region's steel industry.
The company on Wednesday reported an operating loss of 179 million Swedish kronor for its SSAB Europe unit, compared with a profit of 42 million kronor a year earlier.
SSAB attributed the decline to the negative effect of lower prices for standard steel products in what it called a "cautious" European market.
The weak European performance was offset by a strong result in its Americas division, which helped lift the group's overall operating profit to 1.87 billion kronor from 1.25 billion kronor in the same period last year.
The results come as the European Commission proposes new safeguards to counteract the negative impacts of global excess capacity on the European steel industry, according to the company.
"SSAB welcomes the proposal since it protects fair and open trade, while strengthening competitiveness," the company said in its report.
The company said it adjusted European operations during the seasonally weaker quarter with planned maintenance, which will also take place in the fourth quarter in both Europe and North America.
Group revenue for the quarter fell to 22.96 billion kronor from 24.37 billion kronor a year ago.
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