[ferro-alloys.com]Finished steel demand in the US, Canada and Mexico is expected to grow 1.7% year on year in 2018 and an additional 1% in 2019, the World Steel Association said Tuesday.

Still known as the NAFTA region at the Worldsteel trade group, demand is expected to reach 143.2 million mt in 2018 and 144.7 million mt in 2019, according to worldsteel's October 2018 short-range outlook released Tuesday at the organization's general assembly in Tokyo.

"US steel demand grew strongly in 2017, benefiting from strong consumer spending and business investment supported by tax and regulatory changes and fiscal stimulus, although growth in the construction sector moderated," worldsteel said. "Steel demand growth in 2019 [in the US] is expected to slow as auto manufacturing and construction activity is expected to see modest growth," it added.

Elsewhere in the Americas, finished steel demand in Central and South America is expected to grow 3.4% on the year in 2018 to 43.2 million mt, and then another 4.3% in 2019 to 45.1 million mt.

Steel demand in Mexico suffered recently from question marks related to NAFTA negotiations and the election, but the recent signing of the US-Mexico-Canada-Agreement, or USMCA, "and the new president calming jittery markets" are expected to help Mexico's economy to recovery gradually in 2019, according to Worldsteel.

In general, steel demand in the Latin American economies "is continuing its second year of recovery backed by positive developments in the domestic and global economy," worldsteel said.

Steel demand in Brazil continued its stable recovery in 2018, and it's expected to continue into next year "as election fever subsides."

worldsteel, however, noted: "Brazil's construction sector has not yet started to recover from its deep crisis."

• [Editor:王可]