Brazilian steel association, IABr, said it expects improved prospects for the domestic steel industry in 2020 ahead of its official 2019 steel figures release.
IABr said Brazilian steel production in 2020 should increase 5.3 percent, year-on-year, reaching 34.2 million mt. Domestic steel sales volumes in 2020 are expected to grow 5.1 percent, year-on-year, to 19.4 million mt, while Brazil’s domestic steel consumption in 2020 is forecasted to improve 5.2 percent, year-on-year, to 21.8 million mt.
“Such optimism is based on the fact that the government’s policy is assuring the needed conditions for a sustainable (economic) growth,” IABr said in a statement.
Despite the optimism, IABr said Brazil still needs to grow steel export volumes at the same time domestic mills increase the use of their capacity, which is currently at 64 percent.
“To do that, the Brazilian costs need to decline, … as well as obstacles imposed to our (steel) exports, such as the one imposed by the US under Section 232,” IABr said.