This step is part of a strategy to expand into new areas

South Korean steel producer POSCO Holdings will sell its remaining stake in Japanese company Nippon Steel, BusinessKorea reports.

After selling half of its stake in September, POSCO will also liquidate the rest. The company is expected to receive more than 200 billion won (approximately $136.51 million) in additional cash.

POSCO received 25.3 billion yen ($237.5 billion won) from the September sale of its shares in Nippon.

The South Korean company is expanding its investments in new areas of activity (secondary materials for batteries, hydrogen, etc.), so it continues to sell non-core assets. The sale of the Japanese steel manufacturer’s stake is also part of this strategy.

The two companies have held mutual stakes since POSCO’s privatization in 1998. Last year, Nippon Steel sold all of its shares in the latter. This brings to an end a 25-year relationship of cross-shareholding.

As of the end of last year, the company had already secured 662.5 billion won in cash through the disposal of 45 assets. In 2025, POSCO plans to raise an additional 1.5 trillion won through further restructuring of 61 enterprises.

POSCO reduced its steel production by 1.1% year-on-year – to 33.17 million tons in 2024. Rolled steel sales in the period decreased by 1% y/y – to 32.8 million tons. These figures were related to the reconstruction of blast furnaces. However, sales of high value-added products increased despite weak global demand.