(LEAD) Hyundai Steel 2022 net dips 31 pct on declining prices

SEOUL, Jan. 31 (Yonhap) -- Hyundai Steel Co., South Korea's No. 2 steelmaker, said Tuesday its net profit fell 31 percent on-year last year due to declining prices and rising costs.

Net income stood at 1.04 trillion won (US$848 million) on a consolidated basis last year, compared with a net profit of 1.51 trillion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Operating income dipped 34 percent on-year to 1.62 trillion won, while sales spiked 19.7 percent to 27.34 trillion won, it said.

The steelmaker attributed the downbeat performance to a fall in prices of key products and increased costs.

The company expects demand to rebound on the back of China's reopening, and firm demand from automakers and shipbuilders.

The steelmaker targets to sell 1.1 million tons of steel sheets for automakers this year, up 34 percent from a year earlier.

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