ArcelorMittal, the world's biggest steelmaker, said yesterday it had made a modest profit in 2009, beating expectations it would lose out because of the sharp fall in prices for metals.

The company said it finished the year up $118 million, mainly thanks to a profit of $1.07 billion in the fourth quarter as economic growth returned to major markets and steel prices recovered.

"We therefore start the year in a good position to benefit from the progressive, albeit slow, recovery that is under way," chairman and chief executive Lakshmi Mittal said in the earnings statement.

"Although 2010 will continue to be challenging, we are now increasing capital expenditure to take advantage of selected growth opportunities as demand improves," he said.

In 2008, ArcelorMittal had made a net profit of $9.4 billion, and the much slimmer 2009 profit represents a small margin compared to the firm's $65 billion turnover from steel production.

Mittal told reporters in Luxembourg, where the group is headquartered, that a return to growth in emerging markets had helped offset shrinking demand in the major industrial powers that suffered the brunt of the financial crisis.