By Dominic Chopping

STOCKHOLM--SSAB said it would cut production and staffing as many customers adopted a wait-and-see approach amid turbulence triggered by trade barriers and tariffs.

The evolving trade landscape saw increased uncertainty during the second quarter, with the largest impact seen on the European steel market, which weakened on year, it said.

As a consequence, SSAB Europe is set to adjust production and staffing levels during the third quarter, which is also typically seasonally slow. Adjustments will take place through planned maintenance, temporarily reducing working hours and offering employees more flexible work schedules, it said.

Markets for SSAB Special Steels and SSAB Americas were also somewhat affected by the increased uncertainty, it added.

"The direct impact of the U.S. steel tariffs on SSAB is limited, as the local production accounts for most of SSAB's sales on the U.S. market," it said in a statement. "However, certain special products, mainly high-strength steel for the automotive industry, are exported from the Nordics."

The Swedish steelmaker posted a second-quarter net profit of 1.85 billion Swedish kronor ($194.8 million) from 2.42 billion kronor a year earlier as revenue fell 9.4% to 25.63 billion kronor.

Analysts polled by FactSet had expected net profit of 1.94 billion kronor on sales of 26.64 billion kronor.

Third-quarter shipments in special steels are expected to be lower on the quarter, with stable prices. SSAB Europe shipments are also seen falling significantly, but also with stable prices. SSAB Americas shipments are expected to be somewhat lower but with higher prices.

SSAB expects the costs of raw materials to be fairly stable in the third quarter compared to the second quarter except in its SSAB Americas business, where the costs are expected to be somewhat lower.

Write to Dominic Chopping at dominic.chopping@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 23, 2025 02:32 ET (06:32 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.