- ArcelorMittal (MT +5.2%) is ~5% higher after reporting net Q4 earnings of $403M helped by improved costs, compared with a $6.69B loss in the year-ago quarter, and expressing optimism about 2017 and the potential impact of Pres. Trump's proposals on the company.
- CEO Lakshmi Mittal says Trump's promises to invest in U.S. infrastructure and manufacturing are "good for us" as well as the steel industry at large, and thinks Trump could promote strong trade actions against a glut of Chinese steel on the global market.
- MT says year-end net debt stood at $11.1B, down from $15.7B at the end of 2015 and now at the lowest since the creation of the company a decade ago.
- MT says it expects to increase 2017 capex to $2.9B from $2.4B last year due to recovering steel markets; it sees apparent steel consumption - which takes into account inventory changes - for the market to rise by up to 4% in the U.S. and in Brazil in 2017 after declines last year, with Chinese declining by as much as 1%.