ZHENGYANG MACHINERY EQUIPMENT Co.,Ltd.

LatAm Finished Steel Imports Surged 2%

The latest report published by the Latin American Steel Association (ALACERO) points to notable drop in consumption of finished steel by countries in the region. The regional finished steel consumption declined by 3% during the first two months of 2019, as compared with Jan-Feb ’18.

The Latin American steel imports edged higher by 2% in the initial two-month period of 2019, as compared with the year-ago period. The cumulative imports totaled 3.8 Mt of finished steel. Out of this total, 70% were flat products, 27% were long products and the remaining 3% were seamless tubes. The share of imports in total regional consumption also increased from 34% to 36% over the year. The imports totaled 1.8 Mt during the month of February 2019 alone, ALACERO data said.

The finished steel exports by the region totaled 1.68 Mt in Jan-Feb ’19, which is marginally higher by 1% when matched with the exports of 1.67 Mt during the first two months of 2018. Flat products accounted for 45% of the exports, followed by long products with 44.7% and seamless tubes with 10.3%. The monthly exports stood at 761,000 in February.

The Latin American region recorded a trade deficit of 1.06 Mt of finished steel in February this year. This is 25% higher over the previous year. The country to report largest deficit was Mexico. Meantime, Brazil was the only country in the region to maintain surplus in finished steel trade during Jan-Feb ’19.