Russias Severstal slumps to net loss on weak demand

, Russia’s second biggest steel producer, turned in a surprise $150 million (98 million pounds) loss in the fourth quarter as weak demand and prices hurt profit margins, but said it saw signs of a small recovery on the global steel market.Steelmakers across the world have been struggling to cope with weak prices as a growth slowdown in China and Europe’s debt crisis hit construction and industrial production.A cyclical downturn has hit the net worth of Severstal’s main shareholder, Alexei Mordashov, who slid to 11th place from third in the latest annual rich-list rankings by Forbes magazine wi…

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