During the first quarter of 2024, the apparent steel consumption in Chile achieved 538,000 mt, 14.5 percent less than in the same period of 2023, and the lowest volume in this decade, according to the local steel institute ICHA.
According to the institute, during the last three years, a change of pattern has seen the gradual increase of the participation of the domestic steel in the apparent consumption, having reached 39 percent during the first quarter of 2024.
On yearly basis, the apparent consumption of long products increased by 15.7 percent in the first quarter of 2024, in an increase reflecting chiefly a poor base of comparison to the first quarter of 2023, having reached the second lowest volume seen over the last ten years, a poor performance that reflects a troubled domestic real estate market, were 114,000 housing units remain unsold.
For the flat products, the apparent consumption during the first quarter of 2024 has reached 238,000 mt, 33.6 percent less than in the first quarter of 2023 and the lowest volume in this decade.
For the total of 2024, the institute expects a decline by 1.5 percent from 2023 to 2.353 million mt, while for 2025 it is expected to increase by 1.6 percent to 2.390 million mt.