BlueScope posts $1b profit slide, warns on safeguard

Steelmaker BlueScope has reported a more than $1 billion fall in first-half net profit as economic conditions depress steel prices.

BlueScope on Monday posted a first-half net profit after tax of $599 million, a $1.045 billion decrease on a year earlier.

Shares in BlueScope tumbled 10.7 per cent, or $2.13, to $17.69 in morning trade.

CEO Mark Vassella said underlying earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT), an indicator of profitability, was robust at $851 million in the context of softening macroeconomic conditions compared to the previous financial year.