Sales of Hoa Phat construction steel in the first month of this year hit 250,000 tonnes, a 27 per cent year-on-year rise and equal to record sales in October 2018.

Hoa Phat Group said steel sales in the central and southern regions accounted for 48,800 tonnes, with the rest in the northern region.

Its agents were stocking steel for construction after the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday, it added.

The group’s steel exports also saw high volume of 34,6000tones last month. Of which, the US and Cambodia were the biggest importers with volumes of 12,000 tonnes and 11,772 tonnes respectively.

Exports of high-quality coil steel wire accounted for 66.4 per cent of the total exported volume, mainly shipped to the US and Japan. The firm’s steel exports to Japan last year were 20 times higher than that of 2017.

Hoa Phat is aiming for consumption of 3.3 million tonnes of construction steel in 2019 as its second steel rolling line of its Hoa Phat Dung Quat iron and steel production complex is expected to become operational by the end of this year.

Last year, the group posted records in its business results as its consolidated revenue reached VND56.5 trillion (US$2.43 billion), increasing 21 per cent from the previous year. Notably, its after-tax profit hit a record high of VND8.6 trillion, surpassing 7 per cent of its target.

The steel sector contributed to the high growth with up to 85 per cent of revenue and after-tax profit. Its steel sales last year reached a record high of 3.16 million tonnes.

The company exported steel to 14 countries and territories, of which construction steel accounted for 240,000 tonnes. — VNS