Alacero, the Latin American steel association, has reported that in 2013 China's finished steel exports to Latin America increased by 17 percent year on year to 5.3 million metric tons, while Latin America exported just 42,000 metric tons of finished steel products to China in the same period. In the given year, indirect trade exports of steel-containing products from China to Latin America reached 6.5 million metric tons, up one percent, while China's imports of steel-containing products from the region amounted to only 127,000 metric tons, up 39 percent, both compared to 2012. In 2013, Latin America's trade deficit with China in terms of finished steel, raw materials and steel-containing manufactured goods increased by 81 percent compared to 2011 but was in line with the 2012 deficit, totaling $19.67 billion.
On the other hand, in 2013 Latin America still displayed a trade surplus with China in terms of steelmaking raw materials, with the surplus amounting to $25.34 billion. In volume terms, in 2013 Latin America exported 191 million metric tons of steelmaking raw materials to China, two percent less than in 2012, while China exported just 885,000 metric tons of steelmaking raw materials to the region in the given year.
