Brasília – In the first month after the new 25% tariff imposed by president Donald Trump on the steel imported by the United States, Brazilian steel plants increased their sales of the product to the country. In June, Brazil steel exports to the North American market totaled USD 548.6 million, nearly three times the amount exported in the same month of 2017 (USD 210.8 million).
In volume, exports also went up: from 386,900 tons in June of 2017 to 885,200 tons last month. The data was presented by the Ministry of Industry, Foreign Trade and Services (MDIC).
One of the factors that explain the hike in steel exports is the truckers’ strike that occurred in Brazil in May. Due to the strike, sales of the product to the US declined to USD 110.8 million in May. In June, shipments returned to normal levels, with the steel plants unloading the production that couldn’t be exported during the ten days of the strike.
Another factor is that Brazil was exempted of the new tariff. After negotiations, the North American government agreed to exclude the Brazilian, Argentinian and South Korean steel of the 25% tariff upon the imposition of export quotas. In the case of Brazil, the limit for semi-finished steel is 100% of the average exported from 2015 to 2017.
For finished steel products, the limit is 70% of the same average. These limits went into effect in June 1. While the exports limits for 2018 are not reached, Brazil benefits from being exempted of the tariffs and from the high steel prices in the international market.
Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
