Bruno Bolfo, president of the holding that controls steel trading company Duferco, says there will be significant impact on the steel business as a result of the Ukraine war.
The executive notes that Duferco is reorganising, taking into account business with Russia is no longer possible and supply from Ukraine will continue to be disrupted by the war.
“We calculate that the impact for our operations will be a loss of margins worth $20-25 million within steel and raw materials. We can recover these lost margins from other parts of the business, but it will not be easy,” Bolfo said in an interview with Italian-Swiss television seen by Kallanish.
“I have never seen a situation comparable to the one we witness now, having been in business since 1979,” he added. “What is happening could lead to the end of globalisation and exacerbate the division of the world into blocks.”
Duferco is one of the largest steel and raw materials traders in the world, but its holding is also active in other businesses such as energy. In 2020, the holding group posted a profit of over $110m.
Emanuele Norsa Italy