Brazil has sharply reduced its annual import quotas for 13 steel products, making it more likely for those imports to become subject to a 25pc tariff.
The government cut the total quota volume for the June 2025-May 2026 period by nearly 250,000 metric tonnes(t)/yr from a year prior to curb a surge in foreign shipments and support domestic producers, the industry and trade ministry said on 24 June. That leaves about 1.43mn t/yr subject to the quotas, which pay tariffs of 9-11pc.
Brazil also targeted boron-added steel previously used as a workaround to avoid higher tariffs, levying 25pc tariffs on four more steel products.
Quota specifics were defined nearly a month after the 25pc tariff renewal was announced on 27 May. The decision reduces access to lower-duty steel imports, especially for categories that were already subject to tariffs last year.
Hot-rolled coil prices fell in the past three weeks, as buyers avoided placing new orders while awaiting for the details on quota volumes. Argus-assessed HRC cfr slipped to $507-525/t on 26 June, down from $520-540/t in early June.
Pressure from domestic mills
Brazilian steelmakers have pushed for stronger trade protections as steel imports hit a record high in 2024, despite the quota system in place since June 2024.
Import market share reached 26pc in May, 6 percentage points higher than a year earlier, according to industry association Instituto Aço Brasil. Historically, import market share has averaged around 10pc, according to steelmakers data.
Some mill representatives have called for scrapping quotas entirely and imposing a flat 25pc or higher duty on all steel imports. But the government opted for a more moderate path, citing concerns over the potential inflationary impact of harsher measures.
Alongside the quota volume reduction, the secretary of foreign trade has also launched an anti-dumping investigation into 25 hot-rolled steel products from China, as well as metallic sheet from Japan, Germany and the Netherlands.
| Brazil steel import quotas | t | |||
| Product | 2025-2026 | 2024-2025 | Difference | ±% |
| Hot-rolled | ||||
| HRC, ≥600mm wide, 4.75–10mm thick | 3,855 | 23,892 | -20,037 | -84 |
| HRC, ≥600mm wide, 3-4.75mm thick | 9,333 | 19,149 | -9,816 | -51 |
| HRC, ≥600mm wide, ≤3mm thick, ≥275 MPa | 28,560 | 29,115 | -555 | -19 |
| HRC, ≥600mm wide, ≤3mm thick | 70,470 | 113,826 | -43,356 | -38 |
| HRC, ≥600mm wide | 29,394 | na | na | na |
| Flat-rolled, ≥600mm wide | 1,404 | na | na | na |
| Cold rolled | ||||
| CRC, ≥600mm wide, 1-3mm thick | 143,850 | 177,357 | -33,507 | -19 |
| CRC, ≥600mm wide, 0.5-1mm thick | 108,765 | 124,323 | -15,558 | -13 |
| CRC, ≥600mm wide | 27,819 | na | na | na |
| Galvanized | ||||
| HDG, ≥600mm wide, <4.75mm | 432,858 | 470,124 | -37,266 | -0.1 |
| GL, ≥600mm wide | 441,114 | 467,676 | -26,562 | -0.1 |
| HDG, ≥600mm wide | 5,745 | na | na | na |
| Wire rod | ||||
| Wire rod, circular section <14mm dia | 97,605 | 158,928 | -61,323 | -39 |
| Tubes | ||||
| Seamless tubes ( oil, gas industry) | 18,885 | 23,421 | -4,536 | -19 |
| Submerged arc welding steel pipes, >406.4mm OD | 1,470 | 1,689 | -219 | -13 |
| Welded circular steel pipes, >406.4mm OD | 1,260 | 1,260 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Welded circular (oil, gas industry) | 5,037 | 5,094 | -57 | -1 |
| — Braziil's Secretary of Foreign Trade | ||||
