US Steel profit down

US Steel Corp on Tuesday warned that low oil prices and the strong US dollar could negatively impact its business in 2015 but said the potential for US higher consumer spending could help lift demand.
The Pittsburgh-based company gave its assessment of what it called a “volatile market” in 2015 as it reported a lower fourth quarter net profit that was hurt by falling steel prices and the strong US dollar.
But the company’s earnings came in well above market expectations and sent its stock up nearly 9 percent in aftermarket trading.
The company said that in 2015 the US market may continue to see high levels of steel imports, which it said it believed “in many cases are unfairly traded.”
US Steel idled plants in Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, citing weak demand from the oil industry. The plant closures resulted in more than 1,100 layoffs.