[Ferro-Alloys.com] Brazilian integrated steelmaker Usiminas saw finished steel shipments fall to 4.10 million mt in 2019, down 2% down from 2018, the company said Friday.

Total finished steel production fell 4% to 4.06 million mt while crude steel output increased 6% to 3.26 million, said company in its latest earnings report.

In 2019, 90% of shipments were domestic and the rest exported.

In the fourth quarter, shipments of finished steel reached 1 million mt, up 2% from Q4 2018. In Q4, finished steel production fell 10% year on year, while crude steel output increased 12% to 944,000 mt.

According to the company, net revenue of its steel unit was Real 12.7 billion ($2.94 billion) in 2019, in line with the Real 12.6 billion in 2018. However, the net revenue of steel unit in Q4 was Real 3.1 billion, down 5.6% year on year , "due to lower sales volume and average prices in the period," the company said.

According to the company, iron ore sales from its mining unit Musa reached a record high in 2019 of 8.61 million mt in 2019, up 33% from 2018. Of this total, 4.63 million mt was exported.

The company's iron ore production in 2019 reached 7.38 million mt, up 31% from 2018.

In Q4, iron ore shipments were 2.49 million mt, while production was 2.04 million mt, up 65% and 42%, respectively, compared with Q4 2018.

Usiminas reported net earnings of Real 14.94 billion in 2019, an increase of 9% from 2018, while full year net income amounted to Real 377 million, 55% below the previous year. In Q4, net revenue increased 13% year on year to Real 3.87 billion, while net income fell 33% to Real 268 million. （S&P Global Platts）

• [Editor:kangmingfei]