A boost in Brazil’s car and construction industries is likely to improve demand for steel, according to steelmaker Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN). The increased demand will also positively affect the company’s revenues from steel segment, the conglomerate indicated in its earnings report.
Car production is expected to grow 9.4pc in 2020, to 3.05mn units and sales of building materials are expected to grow 4pc, Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN) said in a statement.
In 2019, the company sold 4.5mn mt of steel products, down by 10.7pc compared to the prior year due to lower demand for flat steel products. Of this amount, 3.1mn mt was sold in the domestic market and 1.3mn mt was exported CSN said while reporting its earnings and production for 2019 and Q4 2019.
The company’s iron ore production, on the other hand, improved in 2019. The Brazilian conglomerate shipped 38,545mt of iron ore during the year, up by 11pc compared to 2018. Its net sales increased by 11pc to R$25.4bn ($5.5bn) in 2019, compared to the prior year, due to higher iron ore sales volume.
The company’s gross profit totaled R$8.1bn, up by 19pc compared to 2018, driven by the strong performance of its mining unit, CSN reported.