Metsä Group’s operating result was EUR 186 million (498) for January–December 2024. The comparable operating result was EUR 203 million (488), a 59% decrease from Euro 488 million in 2023, driven by weaker demand, higher raw material costs, and political strikes in Finland.
Sales declined 6% to Euro 5.75 billion, while net cash flow from operations dropped to Euro 11 million from Euro 926 million in the previous year.
President and CEO Ilkka Hämälä comments the report:
“The year 2024 was exceptionally weak financially, with comparable operating profit falling to EUR 203 million. Demand in our main markets was subdued in all prod-uct groups, except for tissue and cooking papers and Kerto® LVL. At the beginning of the year, political strikes caused a loss of EUR 60 million. The effects of higher raw material and logistics costs could not be passed on to product prices, as demand was weak.
Major development investments in recent years have significantly increased depreciation. The positive ef-fects of new capacity on profits have not yet materialised in the sawmill, pulp and paperboard industries due to the start-up of production and weak demand.”
In January–March 2025, Metsä Group’s comparable operating result is expected to be better than in October–December 2024.