Brazil-based steel producer Gerdau SA announced Friday that both crude and rolled steel production fell 7 percent in Q3 2010 from the previous quarter. Production did however still increase 9 percent from Q3 2009.
Shipments reached 4.4 million metric tons in Q3 2010, 14 percent higher than in Q3 2009 and net sales reached $8.2 billion reais (US$4.8 billion) in the Q3 2010, 20 percent more than in the comparable quarter last year primarily a result of higher shipments and higher net sales per ton sold.
World steel output grew in Q3 2010 in relation to Q3 2009 in the main regions where
Gerdau operates. A highlight was the recovery in crude steel production in North America, which recorded an extremely low level of capacity utilization in 2009 but increased 27 percent over Q3 2009.
Even though it registered a small decrease (-2 percent) in steel production in Q3 2010, China remains an important player in the international market, representing 45 percent of Gerdau's world steel output. Excluding China, world steel production grew by 11 percent in the period. In Brazil, the higher production in Q3 2010 in relation to Q3 2009 was due to the continued solid performance from end -users, such as the construction, auto and industrial sectors.