During the conclusion of its seminar this week in São Paulo, Latin American steel association Alacero discussed how regional steel imports in 2023, chiefly from China, have directly affected the steel production in Latin America, despite the local increase of consumption of rolled products.
According to Alacero, the consumption of rolled steel products in the region will increase from 2022 by 2.4 percent to 71 million mt in 2023, while the local production of such items will decline by 7.5 percent to 58 million mt.
Similarly, regional steel exports will decline by 2.6 million mt to 7.9 million mt, while imports will increase by 2.1 million mt to 26.5 million mt.
Alacero claims that steel imported from China is negotiated under unfair market conditions, adding that, in addition to subsidized prices, the steel production in China is also more harmful to the environment. The association quoted data from the Worldsteel Association stating that, in 2022, the average volume of CO2 by mt of steel produced was 1.91 mt for the world average, 1.55 mt for Latin America and 2.24 mt for China.
Data unveiled during the Alacero Summit about the main steel producers in Latin America indicates that the apparent consumption of rolled steel products in 2023 will show Mexico increasing from 2022 by 9.7 percent, Brazil declining by 1.5 percent, Argentina increasing by 0.7 percent and Colombia increasing by 2.4 percent.