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Armco on track

for improvement says chairman

PITTSBURGH: After a series of disappointing setbacks in its specialty steel operations that hurt profitability, Armco Inc is on track to improve earnings and post a better year in 1996, said James F. Will, the company's chairman and chief executive officer on Friday.

"I think I will be able to stand here next year and tell you a much different story," Will said at Armco's annual shareholders' meeting.

Armco's net income fell last year to $29.8 million, or $0.11 per share, from $77.7 million, or $0.57 per share, in 1994.

Much of the shortfall was attributed to Armco's Mansfield, Ohio, plant, which since 1994 has undergone a $225 million expansion and modernization program.

Mansfield's losses totaled $104.2 million last year after its operations experienced several equipment failures that resulted in costly outages.

Will said operations at Mansfield are improving, which should improve Armco's earnings this year. "We're as disappointed as you are by the difficulties we've run into in carrying out these capital improvements, but significant progress is being made that will improve the results at Mansfield in the second half," he said.

Separately, Will said at a press conference following the annual meeting that Armco plans to boost its export sales within the next several years. "We're looking at by the year 2000 having exports account for 15 to 20 percent of sales," he said.

Armco's exports currently account for less than three percent of sales. The company already has a presence in Europe but Will said Armco is targeting developing areas of the world for export expansion, including the Pacific Rim, China and India.

"We're going into countries where there is low to no usage of specialty steel," he said.-Reuter