Brazilian steelmakers Usiminas and ArcelorMittal Brazil are expected to raise steel prices, after Companhia Siderurgica Nacional (CSN) announced a 10.5 percent hike on steel prices at its distribution chain, according to Brazil’s flat steel distributors association, Inda.
Inda said both Usiminas and ArcelorMittal Brazil should follow the same move, as Covid-19 increased costs for steelmakers. Inda’s president, Carlos Loureiro, said the hike should be around 10 percent.
Loureiro said that despite sluggish domestic steel demand, Usiminas and CSN should still go ahead with the price increase, as some segments, including civil construction and the appliances sector, have shown a marginal recovery.