Alacero, Latin America’s steel association, is upbeat regarding the prospects for the region’s steel sector in 2017.
At the Alacero event this week, executives at the association unveiled optimistic prospects for the local steel segment in the year to come as two of the major economies in the region, Brazil and Argentina, should resume their growth.
“The local steel industry is getting back to normal. Latin America will resume its growth, backed by Brazil and Argentina,” said Jefferson de Paula, Alacero’s president.
According to Alacero’s estimates, apparent steel consumption in Latin America should increase 3.6 percent in 2017, year-on-year, considering the association’s current estimate of 64.8 million mt of apparent steel consumption in 2016.
As for 2016, apparent steel consumption is expected to show a decline of 6.5 percent, year-on-year.
In Brazil, apparent steel consumption in 2016 should reach 18.2 million mt, 14.4 percent down, year-on-year. As for 2017, steel consumption in the same country is expected to rise 3.8 percent, year-on-year, to 18.9 million mt.
Mexico, Argentina, Colombia and all the rest of Latin America should produce 24.6, 4.3, 4 and 13.7 million mt of steel in 2016, respectively. Those figures represent growths of 1.6 percent and 0.2 percent, year-on-year, for Mexico and Colombia, respectively. On the opposite side, Argentina and the rest of Latin America should see declines of 18 and 6 percent, year-on-year, in steel consumption in 2016.