Brazilian slab exporters are negotiating deals at $510/mt, FOB conditions for basic commercial grades, stable from last week.
The price follows the trend of HRC prices in the US market, now considered as the primary determinant in the pricing of Brazilian slab export agreements to all countries.
Initial figures now indicate that slab exports from Brazil have exceeded 1 million mt in April, reaching the highest monthly volume in recent years, and comparable to 661,600 mt exported in March.
The increase may be influenced by optimism with the current Brazil-US negotiations, where Brazil is requesting a reduction of the 25 percent import tariff for slabs. The US relies on slab imports to support their local rolling operations.
Sources indicated that the increase might be partially attributed to the delayed registration of prior exports with customs authorities.