NYSE-listed Cleveland-Cliffs has increased its earnings a share from continuing operations by 171% to $0.76 apiece for the quarter ended June 30, compared with $0.28 apiece in the second quarter of 2017.

The company on Friday reported consolidated revenues of $714-million, compared to the prior year’s second quarter revenues of $471-million.

Income from continuing operations was $229-million, compared with $84-million in the second quarter of 2017.

Adjusted earnings before tax, interest, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) were $276-million – a 103% increase from 2017’s second quarter Ebitda of $136-million.

Cleveland-Cliffs chairperson, president and CEO Lourenco Goncalves said in a statement that the second quarter is a definitive statement about the company and its earnings power.

“With the announced sale of the Asia Pacific Iron Ore segment, we have now completed our multi-year transformation back to our roots as a supplier of high-grade iron units to the Great Lakes steel industry.

“This transformation has enabled us to take full advantage of our unique position within the Great Lakes steel market and, with that, the following quarters should be a continuation of this strong second quarter, with the added positive contribution of the usual favorable seasonality of warmer weather during the entire second half of the year,” he explained.

Going forward, the company expects 2019 to be a continuation of a strong performance of 2018, based on the renewed strength of American manufacturing, the multi-year positive impact of the tax reform implemented in 2018 in the US, and the company’s strong position as the supplier of iron ore pellets within the Great Lakes region.

“Our strategy is not only to protect our strong market position in the Great Lakes, but to grow and evolve with the continuously changing steel industry by supplying high-performance ore-based metallics to Electric Arc Furnaces, starting in 2020. This evolution should further improve our already tremendous profitability in the coming years," concluded Goncalves.