REFILE-POSCO says no immediate plan to hike steel prices
(Corrects spelling to "tonne" from "ton" in second paragraph)
SEOUL, June 9 (Reuters) - POSCO (005490.KS), the world's fourth-largest steelmaker, denied Monday local newspaper reports that it would raise product prices soon to reflect higher raw material costs and a price gap with competitors' offerings.
Maeil Business Newspaper said citing industry sources that POSCO could raise domestic prices as early as in June, and predicted a hike of 15 percent, or around 100,000 won ($97) per tonne. POSCO sells three-quarters of its products at home.
POSCO denied having any immediate plans for a price increase.
"We have no current plan to raise steel prices," said Choi Doo-jin, a POSCO spokesman. "We are closely monitoring market conditions."
Shares in the South Korean steel maker fell 1.2 percent to 578,000 won by 0009 GMT, outperforming the wider market's 2.6 percent drop.
POSCO raised prices by as much as a fifth on April 10, but expectations for a further hike have been high as its prices still lag those of Chinese or smaller domestic rivals such as Hyundai Steel (004020.KS).
Despite rising prices of raw materials such as iron ore and coking coal, POSCO has kept its hikes minimal to maintain good relations with customers. ($1=1031.0 Won) (Reporting by Rhee So-eui; editing by Jonathan Hopfner)
