Brazil’s total flat steel distributors’ sales rose by 39pc to 403,100mt in September from 290,000mt in the same month last year, according to the National Institute of Steel Distribution (Inda).
Total flat steel product purchases also increased by 29.2pc to 316,700mt in September from 245,100mt in the same prior-year period, Inda said in a statement on Thursday adding that in October it estimated the purchase volume to remain level with last month, while sales could drop by 5pc.
Flat steel inventory fell by 7.8pc in September from the previous month to 703,500mt, Inda noted, with around 1.7 months’ worth of stock available in September.
The material’s imports also declined by 22.5pc to 67,300mt last month, from 86,900mt in September 2019.
Brazilian crude steel production rose by 7.5pc to 2.6mn mt in September on an annual basis. The South American country’s steel industry is operating at about 60pc of its production capacity due to the effects of the pandemic.