Alacero expresses support for scrap export restrictions

São Paulo-based Alacero, a trade association for steel producers in Latin America, reportedly has spoken out in favor of ferrous scrap exports as a way to support and protect the profits of regional steelmakers.

A March 8 online report from Steel Orbis says Alacero has called on national or local governments “to restrict scrap exports as a way to help reactivate the region’s economic growth.”

Alacero, according to Steel Orbis, cites China’s looming presence as a ferrous scrap importer as a reason to keep scrap in close proximity and affordable for regional steelmakers.

According to Alacero, Colombia has already enacted such restrictions. Beyond Latin America, ferrous scrap export restrictions have been proposed or enacted in nations ranging from South Africa to the United Arab Emirates to Sri Lanka.

In a mid-February news release, Alacero points to research by a Brazilian professor it says warns of “the risks of competitive differences in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico with countries in Asia such as South Korea, India, Vietnam and, especially, China.”

Adds the Brazil-based trade group, the study also “draws attention to the risk this represents for the metal-mechanic value chain of the steel industry in Latin America.”

Alacero says its membership consists of more than 60 steel producing and related companies whose production is around 60 million tons annually.