By Robb M. Stewart

Cleveland-Cliffs expects to bounce back from a tough year for steel in 2024, with orders already showing signs of improving and benefits expected to flow through from the White House's sweeping tariffs.

The Ohio-based steelmaker estimated its revenue slumped to about $4.3 billion in the final quarter of last year and to roughly $19.2 billion for the year, from $5.11 billion and $22 billion, respectively, the year before.

That is expected to have spun the company to an adjusted loss before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of about $85 million in the latest quarter. That would compare with earnings of $279 million on the same basis a year earlier.

Cliffs said it expects steel shipments to have totaled about 3.8 million net tons in the fourth quarter and 15.6 million tons for the year. Shipments in 2023 had reached a record 16.4 million tons.

Lourenco Goncalves, Cliffs' chairman, president and chief executive, said that 2024 was the worst year for domestic steel demand since 2010, outside of a Covid-impacted 2020.

"As the largest supplier to the automotive industry in North America, we were especially impacted by muted demand from this sector in the second half of the year. This was the primary driver of our weaker results, particularly in the fourth quarter, which we expect to be the trough as we look forward," he said.

Goncalves said that so far in the new year the company has already seen improvements in its order book, both automotive and non-automotive, and he is confident that President Trump's agenda, including tariffs against Mexico, Canada and China, will have an outsized benefit on Cleveland-Cliffs.

The company in November closed a deal to buy Stelco Holdings, pivoting from a yearslong pursuit of rival U.S. Steel to instead add steel mills in Canada and more exposure to customers who typically purchase steel on the open market. Goncalves said Stelco should also benefit from the steel tariffs.

In premarket trading Monday, Cliffs' shares were 2.8% lower at $9.95. The stock ended last week at $10.24, up 8.9% in the new year, but down 50% over the last 12 months.

Cliffs, the second-largest steelmaker in North America behind North Carolina-based Nucor, plans to release its fourth-quarter financial results after the U.S. market close on Feb. 24.

Write to Robb M. Stewart at robb.stewart@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 03, 2025 08:13 ET (13:13 GMT)

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