Latin American Crude Steel Output Witnessed Marginal Dip

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The Latin American crude steel production fell marginally during the month of May this year. The regional output totaled 5.2 Mt, marginally lower by 1% when compared with May 2018, said latest trade statistics released by the Latin American Steel Association (ALACERO).

The accumulated crude steel production totaled 25.9 Mt during the first five months of the year, lesser by 5% when matched with the corresponding five-month period in 2018. The Jan-May ’18 crude steel production by Latin American countries had totaled 27.1 Mt.

The largest crude steel producer in the region during the initial five-month period of 2019 was Brazil, with an output of 14.0 Mt. The Brazilian production accounted for 54% of the total regional output. In second place was Mexico, whose production totaled 8.1 Mt, accounting for 31% of the total output by the region. The country represented 49% of the negative accumulated balance of crude steel production.

According to ALACERO, the indicators of various Latin American economies, including Brazil, have continued to remain weak during the first five months of the current year. The economies of Chile and Mexico are seen facing slowdowns. The economy of Argentina continued to decline, whereas that of Colombia reported gradual improvement.