In the first quarter of this year, Chinese finished steel exports amounted to 23.5 million mt, and of this volume 2.4 million metric tons arrived in Latin America, up 29 percent on year-on-year basis, according to Alacero, the Latin American steel association. The value of Latin America's finished steel imports from China in the given period amounted to $1.493 billion, while the average price of these finished steel shipments to Latin America - at $621/mt, down seven percent year on year - was four percent higher than the average price of Chinese finished steel shipments to the rest of the world, reversing the trend seen in recent times.
In particular, in the first three months the average price in Central America of finished steel imports from China was $501/mt, 16 percent lower than the average price of Chinese shipments to the rest of the world, while the average price in the Dominican Republic of finished steel imports from China was $505/mt, 15 percent lower than the average price of shipments to the rest of the world, while the average price of Chinese imports in Peru was $536/mt, 10 percent lower. These low finished steel prices are part of China's strategy to increase exports in order to maintain its plants in operation and avoid unemployment, according to Alacero
Meanwhile, in the first quarter, Latin America received 1.4 millions mt of flat steel and 840.000 mt of long steel from China.