Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Usiminas Q1 total steel sales drop 3%
Brazilian steelmaker Usinas Siderúrgicas de Minas Gerais (Usiminas) reported total sales volume of 1.9 million tonnes in the first quarter of 2008, a 3% decline compared with the corresponding period of last year
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Brazilian steelmaker Usinas Siderúrgicas de Minas Gerais (Usiminas) reported total sales volume of 1.9 million tonnes in the first quarter of 2008, a 3% decline compared with the corresponding period of last year.
“The local market continues to be prioritised in order to keep up with the growth of domestic demand. Sales to the local market in Q1 2007 totaled 72% of the volume while in Q1 2008 this percentage rose to 81%,” the steelmaker said in a report.
Shipments to the Brazilian market reached 1.5 million tonnes in the first three months of the year, 11% above the same period of 2007. Exports in January-March totaled 354,000 tonnes, a 36% drop from the first quarter of 2007.
Crude steel production fell 6% year-on-year in the first quarter to 2 million tonnes due an output decrease at Usiminas' mill located in Cubatão, São Paulo state, as a result of scheduled stops for the relining and upgrading of some equipment such as the blast furnace no 1 and the continuous casting machine No 3, among others.
The steelmaker reported consolidated net income of 646 million Reais ($379 million) in January-March, up 1% compared with the corresponding period of last year. Net revenues rose 7% year-on-year to 3.6 billion Reais in the first quarter as a result of higher prices, product mix improvements and higher sales to the domestic market.
