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Reuters: Steel Group Sees Brazil Steel Output, Sales Down as Economy Slows

08/21/2013 - Brazil's largest steel industry lobbying group on Tuesday cut its estimate for output and sales this year, a sign that mills are grappling with weak domestic demand and the impact of a currency slump on costs, according to a Reuters report.

Mills are unlikely to see raw steel output grow this year, and sales are expected to rise at a slower pace than previously thought, Instituto Aço Brasil said. The group, also known by its acronym of IABr, now expects sales to rise 5.3% in 2013, with no expansion of output.
"Local demand really disappointed us. Its performance was worse than we imagined, but we remain hopeful things will get better at some point," Marco Polo de Mello Lopes, president of IABr, said at a news conference in Rio de Janeiro.
The new estimates underpin growing concerns among industry leaders over the government's ambiguous stance on the sector, which has been showing signs of recovery from its worst crisis in years. Previously, IABr had expected increases of 5.8% in output and 7.6% in sales…