Brazil exported 453,300 mt of slab in August, 63 percent more than in July, at an average FOB price increased by 10.6 percent to $395/mt, said the local ministry of development, industry and foreign trade, MDIC.
ThyssenKrupp was the top exporter (205,700 mt at $368/mt), followed by ArcelorMittal Tubarao (149,200 mt at $430/mt), and Gerdau Acominas (79,200 mt at $421/mt).
Companhia Siderurgica do Pecem (CSP), the recently inaugurated slab producer in the northeastern state of Ceara, had its first exports registered by customs, 19,000 mt at $298/mt, a price probably linked to quality tests by clients in Turkey and Italy, rather than to market conditions.
One market player mentioned that slabs of the basic commercial grades remain negotiated for export at $320/mt, FOB conditions, a price stable over five weeks, while a second source said that such price is now in the $330/mt to $340/mt range, FOB.
The main destinations of Brazilian slab exports in August were the US (254,200 mt), the EU (64,600 mt), Turkey (54,000 mt), Canada (41,000 mt) and Mexico (39,400 mt).