The Pakistan Steel has achieved one of the most dramatic turnaround in the corporate history of the country by accruing a record turnover of Rs 45 billion, sales of Rs 24.67 billion, and a profit of over Rs 6 billion during the outgoing fiscal.
Although the PSM turnaround started 2-3 years ago, it gradually picked up in 2002-03, and in the last six months of the current financial year, it has surpassed all previous records of sales and profit-making through innovative moves.
The achievements of the current fiscal include record high financial turnover of Rs 45 billion against Rs 41.5 billion of last year, highest ever sales of Rs 24.67 billion which is 31 percent higher than the budgeted sale target and 11 percent up than last year, and a record profit of approximately over Rs 6 billion which is 500 percent more than the estimated profit of Rs 1 billion.
The per share earning of the PS has also improved by 600 percent this year from Rs 0.50 to Rs 3.57 per share, whereas the financial charges has been reduced by Rs 910 million as compared to last year.
It secured earning through effective treasury management that stands at Rs 200 million, while liquidity has increased from Rs 410 million last year to Rs 6.1 billion in the current fiscal.
The savings of the PS in foreign exchange reaches nearly $387 million, besides contributing an handsome amount of over Rs 5 billion towards national exchequer in the form of duties and taxes.
Pakistan Steel (PS) Chairman Lieutenant General Abdul Qayyum (Retd) highlighted these financial results of the PS for the current fiscal, while speaking at a signing ceremony of a MoU between the Pakistan Steel (PS) and the Transparency International (TI) on Wednesday.
He said despite unprecedented upsurge in international/domestic steel prices, PS billet prices had been remained stable at Rs 28,500/pmt since February 2004, which helped in bursting the fake balloon of domestic dealers' artificial price-hike up to Rs 60,000/pmt of steel bars.
The PS chief also said the PS had embarked upon a path of rapid progress, and was undoubtedly on the launching pad for revamping and expansion, adding the PS major preoccupation, at present, was critically needed BMR and revamping which would immediately be commenced through PS own resources.
He also pointed out the PS was also undertaking the much awaited expansion from 1.1 to 3 mtpy for which financial and technical consultants were preparing bankable feasibility and awaiting financial packages from interested countries.
In this regard, he said the PS had already acquired the services of the AKD Securities as its financial consultant for professional financial advice, while Corus Consulting, a UK-based steel-related international company, was also being hired as technical consultant to prepare the technical feasibility of the PS expansion plan.
The PS chief, however, said it is pertinent to mention that despite all of the attractive performance of the PS, its newly-hired financial consultant has asked the PS management to defer the idea of floating its shares in equity market for some time.
According to an official source, the AKD Securities advised the PS that as it still bore some carryover losses it would not be possible for it to get premium on its shares in such condition, so the idea should be delayed till the clearance of all of its outstanding losses.
Later, PS Chairman Lieutenant General Abdul Qayyum (Retd) and TI Executive Director Shuakat Ummari jointly signed an agreement aimed at bringing PS procurement procedures to international standards of transparency.
Also present on the occasion, former Sindh governor Moinuddin Haider, when asked whether he is going to replace the present governor of the province, Dr Ishrat-ul-Ibad, he replied in negative, saying he does not have any idea about these sorts of rumours.
"Neither I am a politician, nor I contested elections, I just want to see a peaceful Karachi with conducive environment for business and investment", Moin remarked.