Brazilian cold-rolled coil (CRC) exports dropped in May amid reduced trade with Argentina and China, according to Secex, the foreign trade secretariat of the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade.
For the month of May, Secex reported that Brazil exported 3,000 mt of CRC and imported 8,600 mt, compared with 9,100 mt exported and 24,500 mt imported in April,
Exports for May were destined to the US, 2,700 mt at $823/mt, FOB conditions, shipped by CSN, while Usiminas exported 300 mt at $796/mt to South American countries. The 67 percent decline in volume exported in May reflects sales to Argentina, which were slashed by 98 percent.
May imports came from South Korea, which supplied 7,600 mt at $521/mt, and from China, which supplied 1,000 mt at $643/mt, both on FOB terms.
The declining exports follow a pattern established since Brazil imposed antidumping duties, in February, on imports of CRC and coated flat products from China, with South Korea replacing China as the top supplier of these products to Brazil.
