Apparent steel consumption in Brazil totaled 1.61 million tonnes in March 2020, falling by 11.1% from 1.82 million tonnes in the corresponding month of 2019, the national steelmakers' association, Instituto A??o Brasil, said on Friday April 24.
Aside from December, which is a traditionally weaker month for steel demand because of holidays, this was the lowest figure reported since January 2019. Some state governments in the country were starting to implement selective quarantines in March to contain the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.Flat-rolled steel consumption in March reached 997,000 tonnes, a 9.8% year-on-year decrease from 1.11 million tonnes. Meanwhile, long steel demand totaled 617,000 tonnes, a 13% drop in the same comparison from 710,000 tonnes.
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