IANS
Rio de Janeiro, Aug 16: Brazil's steel production increased by 28.5 percent last month compared with June, the Iron and Steel Institute said.
Brazil is the biggest producer and exporter of steel in Latin America and the world's 15th-largest steel exporter.
The country's steel production in July was 2.5 million tonnes.
The production for the first seven months of 2009 was 13.1 million tonnes, a decline of 36.9 percent compared with the same period last year, the institute said.
Brazil exported 780,000 tonnes of steel last month, earning $377 million, representing a fall of 9.6 percent by volume and 11.3 percent by value from July 2008.
Brazilian steel makers have earned $2.5 billion from exports this year.
Steel accounts for around 10 percent of the country's total exports.