The Brazilian Government is opening an investigation to determine the existence of unfair competition in China’s exports of carbon steel sheets to the South American country.
The investigation, under the responsibility of the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade, is the result of a complaint made last October by the Brazil´s steel giant CSN.
The Ministry stated in a memo, published in the Official Journal, that it decided to open the investigation because the sale of these plates may be causing damage to the domestic industry.
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CSN, the only manufacturer of carbon steel sheets in Brazil, complained that imports of this product come from China at a price of USD 1,292.90 per tonne, which is 44% less than the usual market tariff.
These sheets, which can be supplied in the form of a coil, roll or iron, were passed in 2022 from a tariff rate of 12% to 10.8%, according to data contained in the Ministry’s circulary, published in the Official Journal.
Brazilian steelmakers have already met with representatives of government ministries to lobby for steel import taxes to be raised to 25%. Currently, Brazil’s steel import taxes vary from 9.6% to 12.8%, depending on the product.
From January to October this year, almost 57% of the steel imports entering Brazil were from China. The Asian giant is expected to export a total of around 100 million mt of steel this year.
Many Brazilian steel users are against a hike in import taxes. A group of 15 associations of steel consuming companies, including from the construction and automaking sectors, sent a strongly-worded letter last week to the government warning of the impact such a measure could have on local costs and inflation.
IABr has revised downwards its domestic production and sales forecast for this year due to the persistently high level of imports, the institute said. According to the forecast published Nov. 23, Brazil’s crude steel production is set to fall this year to 31.35 million mt, down 8% from 2022, amid a stagnant market and surging imports.
