According to the Brazil Steel Institute (IABr), Brazilian crude steel production in the first four months of the current year amounted to 11.13 million metric tons, 0.1 percent higher year on year. In the same period, Brazilian rolled steel output increased by 0.6 percent to 8.47 million metric tons, including 4.75 million metric tons of flat products - down 2.3 percent, and 3.72 million metric tons of long products - up 4.6 percent, all on year-on-year basis.
Meanwhile, Brazilian steelmakers produced 2.77 million metric tons of crude steel in April of the current year, down 7.5 percent from March and down 5.2 percent year on year. Brazil's rolled steel product output totaled 2.18 million mt in April, decreasing by 3.7 percent month on month and down 2.3 percent year on year. Of this total, the country's flat steel output stood at 1.24 million mt, decreasing by 1.5 month on month and down 0.7 percent year on year, while Brazil's long steel output amounted to 935,600 metric tons, decreasing by 6.5 percent month on month and down 4.4 percent compared to April 2013.
Brazilian domestic steel sales decreased by 6.6 percent year on year in April this year to 1.81 million metric tons, while domestic sales in the first four months totaled 7.29 million metric tons, decreasing by 0.4 percent year on year.
Brazil's exports of steel products in April amounted to 650,000 metric tons, falling by 20.5 percent, and were worth US$495.3 million, down 8.2 percent, both compared to April 2013. Steel product exports in the first four months of the current year totaled 2.65 million mt, worth US$1.95 billion, with decreases of 19.4 percent in volume and 7.2 percent in value compared to the corresponding period of 2013.
Meanwhile, the country's steel import volume in April increased by 10.7 percent year on year to 365,100 metric tons (US$397.0 million), while total steel imports in the first four months amounted to 1.24 million metric tons (US$1.37 billion), representing a 6.3 percent increase in volume from the same period last year.