Slab of the basic commercial grades is now traded for export from Brazil in a range of $590/mt to $595/mt, FOB conditions, a local exporter told SteelOrbis. The price reference compares with a range of $585/mt to $590/mt last week.
According to the source, the price has benefitted from the temporary suspension, for Brazil, of the 25 percent import tariff imposed by the US authorities on steel imports.
The source mentioned that prices are expected to increase again in May, when a new round of negotiations is set to start, covering the supply of slab to clients in the US.
In March, ArcelorMittal Tubarao exported 181,000 mt of slab at $492/mt, Ternium Brazil exported 149,200 mt at $494/mt and Companhia Siderurgica do Pecem exported 141,600 mt at $495/mt, all FOB conditions, with price deals probably closed in January.
The main destinations of the Brazilian slab in March were the US (219,200 mt), the EU (91,500 mt), Turkey (89,800 mt), Canada (57,500 mt) and Argentina (13,800 mt).
