Brazil exported 95,896 mt of finished carbon steel products in September, valued at $78.916 million, while imports totaled 348,075 mt, valued at $264.247 million, according to a report from SECEX, the foreign trade secretariat of the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade.
In August, Brazil exported 76,587 mt worth of finished steel valued at $65.165 million, while imports were 246,658 mt worth $184.553 million, SECEX said.
The trade deficit widened to 252,179 mt in September from 170,071 mt in August, while in value terms it rose from 119.388 million to $185.331 million over the period.
The wider volume deficit was driven mainly by imports of coated flat steel products, which rose 98 percent month on month to 197,342 mt.
By volume, the leading export products in September were wire rod and rebars (28 percent each), coated flat products (15 percent) and HRC (14 percent), SECEX said.
On the import side, the main products were coated flat products (57 percent), HRC (18 percent), CRC (14 percent) and steel wire (5 percent).
Imports from China accounted for 11 percent of Brazil's total finished steel imports during September, down sharply from a 23 percent share in August. This is the lowest level in recent years and once again reflects the the affects of anti-dumping measures adopted by Brazilian authorities in February on imports of CRC and coated flat products originating in China.
