Brazilian steelmaker Usiminas is set to increase its prices for domestic flat products during the third quarter. So said company chief executive Sergio Leite during the Q2 earnings call monitored by Kallanish. Usiminas is expected to adjust its prices by 2-3%.

According to the executive, the upward adjustment is necessary because of the recovery in raw material prices in the international market and growing production costs. It is also a reflection of the current depreciation of the Brazilian real against the US dollar, which hikes the price differential between domestic and import offers.

Meanwhile, the poor performance of the Brazilian economy as well as a slower automotive market has led Usiminas to postpone its investment into a new galvanizing line. This will be reconsidered by the company’s board in the next 12 months, following the monitoring of market conditions, Leite confirmed.