The price of Galvalume reached BRL3,200/mt ($1,015/mt), in the Brazilian domestic market, ex-works, full taxes except IPI, a major distributor in the southeast told SteelOrbis.
The price in BRL is 13.5 percent higher than the quotation of one month ago, while in $ the increase was 3.6 percent, reflecting the devaluation of the BRL vis-à-vis the $ over the period.
According to analysts, the higher price reflects the reduced competitiveness of the imported product, considering the devaluation of the BRL by 17 percent so far in the year.
Earlier this year, local producers were having problems in implementing a 6 percent increase to compensate for the inflation in 2014, due to the sluggish demand resulting from problems with the country’s economy.
In February, Brazil imported 11,400 mt of Galvalume and similar products, entirely from China, at an average FOB price of $735/mt, 5 percent lower month-on-month.
Galvalume is produced in Brazil by CSN and ArcelorMittal, but the volume is not sufficient to supply the domestic market, so the country is a net importer of the product, mostly from China.