Obbligazioni societarie Voestalpine, ThyssenKrupp, ArcelorMittal e l'industra dell'acciaio

[Imark]

qualcuno ha notizie fresche della russa severstal e suggerimenti timing di ingresso settore acciaio

Severstal non la seguo... sul comparto dell'acciaio, si prospettano tempi duri ...

A tale riguardo, ArcelorMittal è in trattative con le banche per avere una sospensione per un anno del covenant sul debito che preclude la possibilità di avere un leverage (net debt/EBITDA) superiore a 3,5x

ArcelorMittal Said to Seek Waiver of Covenant in Bank Talks

By Mark Herlihy


July 8 (Bloomberg) -- ArcelorMittal, the world’s biggest steelmaker, is talking to lenders about waiving the covenant that limits how much it can borrow based on earnings.

The company is seeking a waiver for a year, said a person familiar with the situation who declined to be identified because details of the negotiations haven’t been published. ArcelorMittal is in “advanced discussions” with its principal bankers, the Luxembourg-based company said today in a statement.

“While the company does not anticipate breaching the existing covenant, it is prudent given the current operating environment to strengthen the financial position of the company,” the steelmaker said. The shares fell 4.9 percent in Amsterdam trading.

The company, formed through the takeover of Arcelor SA by Mittal Steel Co. in 2006, has cut output as much as 50 percent after the global economic downturn curbed steel use by automakers and builders. Steel demand has declined the most since World War II, the World Steel Association said in April and output is set to tumble 15 percent this year.

“The key here is the word ‘advanced,’” Charlie Dove- Edwin, an analyst at MF Global Securities in London who advises selling the stock, said today by phone. “They’ve been saying everything is OK, and quite clearly it isn’t, as they’ve been talking to their bankers for a while.”

Debt-Cutting Goal

The steelmaker said it had liquidity of $23 billion at the end of the first quarter and has raised more than $11 billion from share and bond sales this year. ArcelorMittal has made “good” progress towards its target of cutting debt by $10 billion this year, it added.

ArcelorMittal’s banking covenants require debt to be less than 3.5 times earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, London-based spokesman Giles Read said today by phone. The company posted a net loss of $1.06 billion in the first quarter as plunging metals prices forced it to cut the value of its inventories.

The steelmaker may sell its 50 percent stake in South Africa’s Kalagadi manganese mine to Eramet SA’s Gabonese unit Comilog in a bid to free up cash, French weekly Challenges said today, without saying where it got the information.

ArcelorMittal spent $3.8 billion on acquisitions since the start of 2008, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, as it sought greater control over supplies of iron ore and coking coal, raw materials that soared to record prices last year. The company paid $809.9 million for London Mining Plc’s Brazilian iron ore operations in August and $475 million for Bayou Steel Corp., a producer of steel in Louisiana and Tennessee, in June.

Since then, steel prices have tumbled. European hot rolled coil, a benchmark steel product used in cars and construction, slumped 52 percent since reaching a record high of 815 euros ($1,129) a metric ton in June, according to data compiled by Metal Bulletin.

ArcelorMittal dropped 1.07 euros to close at 21.01 euros in Amsterdam. The percentage slide was the biggest since June 22. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier that the company was seeking a waiver.

 

[Imark]

Fra i players minori del settore c'è anche questa società polacca, che pure ai suoi tempi aveva emesso un bond HY, rispetto al quale ha provveduto ad una serie di buyback consistenti a quotazioni distressed, senza lanciare tender offers (che, si sa, fanno rialzare il prezzo... )

Queste manifestazioni di furbettismo corporate (i riacquisti reiterati di bond sul mercato a quotazioni distressed, effettuate senza lanciare una tender offer) sono pure valutate dalle agenzie come forme di distressed exchange ed importano segnalazione al mercato da parte di Moody's mediante un rating Limited Default della durata di 3 giorni...


[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]Moody's assigns Caa3/LD to Zlomrex following distressed exchange[/FONT]

[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]Approximately EUR127 million of rated debt securities affected [/FONT]

[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]Frankfurt, July 06, 2009 -- Moody's Investors Service assigned a Caa3/LD probability of default rating ("PDR") to Zlomrex SA ("Zlomrex") following the company's recent disclosure that it repurchased EUR20 million face value of its senior secured notes issued by Zlomrex International Finance at substantial discounts to par after a number of buy-backs which had been conducted at the end of 2008 and beginning of 2009, bringing the total face amount of bonds bought back to EUR 43 million. [/FONT]
[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica][/FONT]
[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]The open market transactions, considered together, constitute a distressed exchange and a limited default by Moody's definition. The LD designation signifies a limited default and also incorporates Moody's expectation of additional open market transactions at substantial discounts to par over the next twelve months. Moody's expects to remove the LD designation after approximately three business days. [/FONT]

[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]At the same time Moody's has affirmed the Caa3 corporate family rating with a negative outlook. [/FONT]

[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]The rating of the bonds remains at Ca which is in line with Moody's LGD (loss given default) methodology and implies a somewhat higher recovery rate going forward than the around 20% rate at which the last bond buy backs have been conducted. [/FONT]

[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]Moody's notes that these transactions help Zlomrex reducing its overall debt load and reduce the repayment risk at the time when the bond comes due. [/FONT]
[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica][/FONT]
[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]It does, however, not solve the immediate liquidity and performance pressure which the company is facing due to a high amount of short term debt and the company's reliance on the willingness of its banks to extend maturing credit lines and the very weak operating performance during the last couple of months. [/FONT]
[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica][/FONT]
[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]Therefore, despite the considerable reduction of overall indebtedness, Moody's continues to view Zlomrex' credit risk relatively high reflected in the Caa3 corporate family rating. [/FONT]

[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]Adjustment: [/FONT]
[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]..Issuer: Zlomrex S.A. [/FONT]
[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]....Probability of Default Rating, Adjusted to Caa3/LD from Caa3 [/FONT]

[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]Moody's last rating action on Zlomrex was to downgrade its corporate family rating to Caa3 on 16 June 2009. [/FONT]

[FONT=verdana,arial,helvetica]Headquartered in Poraj, Poland, Zlomrex SA is the largest trade of steel scrap and among the leading producers and distributors of high grade long steel products in its domestic market. Founded in 1990 as a pure scrap trader, the company has transformed itself into a fully integrated producer of steel products through a range of acquisitions mainly in the long steel production and distribution business. Zlomrex SA is privately owned; 100% of the company's shares are held by its founder Mr. Przemyslaw Sztuczkowski[/FONT]

 

[bulogna]

Severstal non la seguo... sul comparto dell'acciaio, si prospettano tempi duri ...

Insieme a questa c'è la evraz (sempre russa) controllata da Abramovich (quello del Chelsea calcio) sul sito si trovano parecchie notizie riguardo alla società ed anche i risultati economici. Boh, forse però un'occhiata gli si può dare. Sono parecchio indebitati ma stanno lavorando per allungare il debito a breve.

 

[bulogna]

Ciao mark, (così festeggio i 100 messaggi )

 

[Imark]

Ciao mark, (così festeggio i 100 messaggi )

Ciao Bulogna, grazie della dedica di festeggiamento ... credimi, mi piacerebbe seguirle tutte, ma fra quelle dei monitor sui quali abbiamo anche i prezzi (telecom, utilities, oil&gas, chimica, dove per fortuna Lorenzo fa la gran parte del lavoro) e quelle dei comparti che seguo ma senza monitoraggio dei prezzi, come questo e qualcun altro, si fa già enorme fatica...

Su questi emittenti russi ed est europei ho davvero grandi riserve già nei periodi di crescita, ancor più in quelli di crisi ... i trucchi n bilancio li adottano in molti, ma temo che in certi paesi si sia su livelli molto elevati

 

[Imark]

Severstal non la seguo... sul comparto dell'acciaio, si prospettano tempi duri ...

A tale riguardo, ArcelorMittal è in trattative con le banche per avere una sospensione per un anno del covenant sul debito che preclude la possibilità di avere un leverage (net debt/EBITDA) superiore a 3,5x

ArcelorMittal Said to Seek Waiver of Covenant in Bank Talks

.....

.

La trattativa ha avuto esito positivo. Da quanto riportato da Bloomberg, la facoltà di indebitarsi oltre il precedente limite di leverage di 3.5x (debito netto che eccede di 3,5 volte l'EBITDA) è stata accordata, con un incremento di costi che scatterà su ben 31 mld $ (in controvalore) di facilities bancarie nel caso in cui quel limite venisse oltrepassato...

ArcelorMittal vanta una posizione di liquidità pari a 34 mld $ in valore quest'anno dai 23 mld $ di fine 2008, raccolta attraverso aumenti di capitale e l'emissione di bond di diversa natura ed in differente valuta (cv, plain vanilla in $ ed euro).

ArcelorMittal Gets ‘Positive Outcome’ in Lender Talks (Update1)

By Mark Herlihy

July 17 (Bloomberg) -- ArcelorMittal, the world’s biggest steelmaker, said there was a “positive outcome” to its request to lenders to amend terms on $31 billion of facilities.

ArcelorMittal asked to change covenants on three separate facilities and has the consent from enough lenders to do so, the Luxembourg-based steelmaker said today in a statement.

The company was seeking a waiver on the amount it can borrow based on earnings, a person familiar with the situation said last week. Borrowing costs under the facilities won’t increase unless net debt rises to more than 3.5 times earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization, the company said today.

The steelmaker, formed by the takeover of Arcelor SA by Mittal Steel Co. in 2006, has cut output by as much as half after the global economic slump curbed steel use by automakers and builders. Demand has declined the most since World War II, the World Steel Association said in April. ArcelorMittal posted a $1.06 billion first-quarter loss.

The shares advanced 59.5 cents, or 2.5 percent, to 24.72 euros as of 10:31 a.m. in Amsterdam trading. The stock has gained 45 percent this year, valuing the company at 38.6 billion euros ($54 billion).

$23 Billion of Liquidity

Credit Agricole SA’s Calyon investment-banking unit and HSBC Holdings Plc coordinated the covenant amendment, ArcelorMittal said. Talks with lenders concerned ArcelorMittal’s 17 billion-euro credit facility, its $4 billion revolving facility and its $3.25 billion forward start facility.

ArcelorMittal said earlier this month it had liquidity of $23 billion at the end of the first quarter and raised more than $11 billion from share and bond sales this year. The company has made “good” progress toward its target of cutting debt by $10 billion this year, it added.

ArcelorMittal spent $3.8 billion on acquisitions since the start of 2008, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, as it sought greater control over supplies of iron ore and coking coal, raw materials used to make steel. Since then, steel prices have tumbled.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mark Herlihy in London at

 

[Topgun1976]

http://www.ehw.ag/

Cè qlc che conosce questa aziendina?Pare thyssen...cè un bel perpetual bond a cifre basse-----

Mark ho preso un granchio

è l 'azione non un bond...

DE0005658009

http://aktien.onvista.de/snapshot.html?ID_OSI=82156&SEARCH_VALUE=DE0005658009

 

[Imark]

http://www.ehw.ag/

Cè qlc che conosce questa aziendina?Pare thyssen...cè un bel perpetual bond a cifre basse-----

Se non sbaglio, c'è scritto che è una controllata di Thyssenkrupp... l'ISIN del bond ?

 

[Imark]

qualcuno ha notizie fresche della russa severstal e suggerimenti timing di ingresso settore acciaio

Recentemente downgradata a BB- da S&P. Come ti dicevo, non la seguo, mi ci sono imbattuto per caso...

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]OAO Severstal Downgraded To 'BB-' On Severe Steel Market Downturn; Outlook Negative[/FONT]

-- The steel sector is experiencing a significant downturn.
-- We are lowering our long-term rating on Russia-based steel producer OAO Severstal to 'BB-' from 'BB'.
-- The negative outlook reflects our expectation of ongoing difficult market conditions.

LONDON (Standard & Poor's) July 17, 2009--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said today that it lowered to 'BB-' from 'BB' its long-term corporate credit and senior unsecured debt ratings on Russia-based steel producer OAO Severstal. At the same time, the Russia national scale rating on Severstal was lowered to 'ruAA-' from 'ruAA'. We have removed all the ratings from CreditWatch, where they were placed with negative implications on May 27, 2009. The outlook is negative.

"The downgrade reflects the severe downturn underway in the steel sector and its impact on Severstal's credit quality. Specifically, we do not envisage the group's credit metrics remaining consistent with the 'BB' rating," said Standard & Poor's credit analyst Alex Herbert.

These metrics include a ratio of funds from operations (FFO) to adjusted debt of 25%-30%. In 2008, Severstal's FFO was $4.6 billion, reflecting strong results in the first nine months of the year. On Dec. 31, 2008, adjusted debt was $5.9 billion and the ratio of FFO to adjusted debt was 78%. We estimate that this declined to about 60% on March 31, 2009.

Like its peers, Severstal is experiencing a broad and severe weakening of its operating performance, caused by very difficult market conditions in the steel sector, including end markets such as auto and consumer. This is evident in sharply reduced capacity utilization, shipments, and steel prices.

In the first quarter of 2009, the group reported an EBITDA loss of $158 million, with particular weakness in its U.S. operations. Over the period, average steel prices in Russia and other markets were lower than in the three months to Dec. 31, 2008, although steel volumes were ahead quarter on quarter.

In addition, we believe that the group's expansion of its U.S. operations, including assets acquired for $3.1 billion in 2008, could remain a drag on group profitability and cash flow and require further restructuring.

Steelmakers have very limited forward trading visibility, which increases uncertainty about future cash flow generation. Market conditions appear to be stabilizing, however, but are likely to remain weak, in our view.

We recognize that Severstal's management is responding with corrective actions to adjust its business strategy and to protect its financial profile. These actions include production cuts, cost-saving initiatives, reducing working capital and capital expenditures, suspending dividends, and refraining from further acquisitions.

In our view, however, these actions are insufficient to fully offset the negative effects of the downturn. We factor into the ratings a materially weaker operating performance in 2009, compared with 2008. We believe that a combination of much lower cash flow generation and quite substantial adjusted debt is likely to put pressure on Severstal's credit quality.

We also factor in the possibility that in the absence of further corrective action by management, and depending on market conditions, Severstal could breach financial covenants later this year, although we assume that Severstal will address this.

The ratings reflect Severstal's position as a leading Russia-based steel producer in a cyclical, capital-intensive, and competitive industry that is experiencing a sharp weakening of market conditions. The ratings are supported by the group's leading domestic market position, especially in flat products, high vertical integration into own raw materials, and a proactive response by management to the industry downturn.

The negative outlook reflects the possibility of a further downgrade during the coming year.

This could occur if Severstal were unable to demonstrate that it is likely to be able to improve its credit metrics, including a ratio of FFO to adjusted debt of about 20% by 2010.

We believe that the group could achieve this metric through an improved operating environment and further corrective action by management.

"A lack of progress in addressing potential financial covenant breaches within the next few months, or a move to negative free operating cash flow, for example, would also place downward pressure on the ratings," added Mr. Herbert.

Ratings stability could be established if the group were able to demonstrate that an improvement in credit metrics, as mentioned above, is sustainable.

 

[pmpm]

A vostro avviso, investire su questi colossi (penso a Thyssen - o anche Arcelor) a 6-7 anni e' rischioso? Anche se Thyssen perdesse l'IG non credo sia da temere un default, o sbaglio?