According to the Brazil Steel Institute (IABr), Brazilian crude steel production in 2014 amounted to 33.9 million metric tons, 0.7 percent lower year on year. In the same period, Brazilian rolled steel output decreased by 5.5 percent to 24.8 million metric tons, including 14.2 million metric tons of flat products - down 5.4 percent, and 10.6 million metric tons of long products - down 5.5 percent, all on year-on-year basis.
Meanwhile, Brazilian steelmakers produced 2.63 million metric tons of crude steel in December last year, down one percent year on year. Brazil's rolled steel product output totaled 1.76 million mt in December, down 13.4 percent year on year. Of this total, the country's flat steel output stood at 1.15 million mt, down 11.3 percent year on year, while Brazil's long steel output amounted to 614,500 metric tons, down 17 percent compared to December 2013.
Brazilian domestic steel sales decreased by nine percent year on year in December last year to 1.46 million metric tons, while domestic sales in the given month totaled 20.73 million metric tons, decreasing by nine percent year on year.
Brazil's exports of steel products in December amounted to 1.02 million metric tons, rising by 70.9 percent, and were worth US$648.3 million, up 52.9 percent, both compared to December 2013. Steel product exports in the whole of 2014 totaled 9.78 million mt, worth US$6.8 billion, with an increase of 20.9 percent in volume and a rise of 22.3 percent in value compared to 2013.
Meanwhile, the country's steel import volume in December decreased by 3.3 percent year on year to 213,500 metric tons (US$237.9 million), while total steel imports in 2014 amounted to 3.97 million metric tons (US$4.1 billion), representing a 7.4 percent increase in volume from 2013.