Brazilian civil construction companies in the northeast state of Ceará are mulling importing steel due to higher prices in the Brazilian domestic market, according to a media report by Diario do Nordeste.
According to civil construction union Sinduscon-CE, domestic steel prices in Brazil are 100 percent up when compared to a year ago, which might force companies to import the product. Sinduscon-CE said higher steel prices in Brazil will result in more expensive new home builds in the coming months in the state of Ceará.
“In a year, steel prices doubled. But price hikes weren’t limited only to the steel sector. (The cost of) other products like cement also increased,” said Patriolino Dias, president at Sinduscon-CE.
Brazilian steel association, IABr, declined to comment on the matter of steel prices, but said prices are a matter of agreement between suppliers and buyers. IABr said the so-called new boom of commodities increased the price of raw materials, which also reflected on steel prices in Brazil.
SteelOrbis reported this week that CSN will increase steel prices between 10 and 15 percent in April, following a recent steel price hike earlier this year.