(ATTN: UPDATES with minor changes throughout)
By Kim Kwang-tae

SEOUL, May 31 (Yonhap) – South Korean steelmakers raised prices for automotive steel for the first time in four years, people familiar with the matter said on Monday, which could boost their results.

POSCO, the country’s largest steel maker, has reached an agreement with Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp., the country’s two largest automakers, to raise prices for automotive steel by 50,000 won (US $ 45) per tonne , they said.

The companies have decided to pass the increased costs of purchasing iron ore on to the client companies.

Iron ore prices jumped to US $ 190.51 per tonne on May 28 from a year earlier, according to data from Korea Resources Corp.

Hyundai Steel Co., the second-largest steel maker, said it has reached an agreement with its captive buyers, Hyundai Motor and Kia, to raise the price of automotive steel by 50,000 won per ton.

Hyundai Steel achieves approximately 30% of its global sales by selling automotive steel sheet to vehicle manufacturers. They are all affiliated with Hyundai Motor Group, the world’s fifth largest automaker by sales.

For the three months ended March 31, Hyundai Steel reported net profit of 219.9 billion won, from a net loss of 115.4 billion won a year earlier.

POSCO’s net profit in the first quarter more than doubled to 1.13 trillion won, from 434.7 billion won in the same period.

In addition, POSCO has reached an agreement with the three largest shipbuilders in the country – Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. and Samsung Heavy Industries Co. – on higher prices for steel plates. thick essentials for shipbuilding. , said a person familiar with the subject without giving further details.

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering operates three shipbuilding units: Hyundai Heavy Industries, Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co. and Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries.

Hyundai Steel has announced plans to conduct negotiations with the country’s three largest shipbuilders – Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. and Samsung Heavy Industries Co. – in the coming weeks on a hike. of thick steel prices. plates.