Press conference for the "International Iron and Steel Institute (IISI)" Annual Conference

ThyssenKrupp performed very successfully in 2007/2008

Dr. Karl-Ulrich Köhler, Executive Board Member of ThyssenKrupp AG and Executive Board Chairman of ThyssenKrupp Steel AG, confirmed the earnings forecast for ThyssenKrupp AG, which had been raised in August. At the annual conference of the International Iron and Steel Institute (IISI) in Washington he said: "We are expecting sales in the region of €53 billion and earnings before taxes and nonrecurring items of more than €3.2 billion in fiscal year 2007/2008."

The Steel segment, which is focused on premium carbon steel flat products, performed very successfully in a robust market environment, but will not match the record earnings of 2006/2007. The reasons for this lie in pre-operating costs for the major projects in Brazil and the USA and restructuring expenses at the metal forming operations.

ThyssenKrupp Steel is confident about its prospects in the current fiscal year 2008/2009. This optimism is based on the fact that the forecasts for the global steel market remain favorable. Demand in particular from Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and the CIS will continue to grow at an above-average rate in the next few years and significantly impact the global market. In Europe, the NAFTA region and Japan, steel market growth will be more moderate given the deterioration in the general economic outlook. "Raw material prices have eased to a certain extent recently, but it remains to be seen how long this will last," said Dr. Köhler.