Gerdau SA (GGB) 2023 Q2 法說會逐字稿

My name is Renata, head of Investor Relations. And participating in our videoconference I have the CEO of Gerdau, Gustavo Werneck, and the CFO and IRO Rafael Japur. We would like to inform you that this videoconference is being recorded. {Operator Instructions)

我叫雷娜塔，投資者關係主管。參加我們視頻會議的還有 Gerdau 首席執行官 Gustavo Werneck 以及首席財務官兼 IRO Rafael Japur。我們謹通知您，本次視頻會議正在錄製中。 {操作員說明)

Good morning, all of you. Hello, everyone, I hope you're all well, and thank you for the opportunity to join us today during this videoconference to announce Gerdau's results for the second quarter of 2023. Next to me is our CFO Rafael Japur. And for both of us, it's always a pleasure to talk to you about our performance and also clarify issues that may arise during our presentation.

大家早上好。大家好，希望大家一切都好，感謝大家今天有機會參加我們的視頻會議，宣布 Gerdau 2023 年第二季度的業績。我旁邊是我們的首席財務官 Rafael Japur。對於我們倆來說，很高興與您談論我們的表現並澄清我們演示期間可能出現的問題。

I would like to start by talking about the macro business environment, the general results, and right afterwards I will give you more details about our business operations. Right after that, Japur will talk about our financial performance. And at the end, I will give you some more details about our ESG agenda. And at the end, we will both be available to talk to you about any points that you want to elaborate further.

我先講一下宏觀的經營環境、總體的業績，然後再給大家介紹一下我們的經營情況。之後，賈普爾將談論我們的財務業績。最後，我將向您提供有關我們的 ESG 議程的更多詳細信息。最後，我們都可以與您討論您想要進一步闡述的任何觀點。

I would like to start the second slide talking about the macro environment in which Gerdau operates. Throughout the second quarter of 2023, and amid a very challenging scenario, we continued to deliver very consistent results based on the [A] model of geographic diversification of assets in the Americas and our flexible production routes. Two factors (technical difficulty) China remains heavy very high steel production, very close to historic levels, while at the same time measures of stimulus to boost steel consumption, in particular, coming from the construction sector, are not yet reflecting in the dynamics of the market. In view of the scenario of [access], steel production in China, China steel exports total about approximately 90 tons a year. Even EBITDA backdrop of import restricted markets such as the United States and Europe, which has impacted the markets where we operate, in particular Brazil.

我想從第二張幻燈片開始討論 Gerdau 運營的宏觀環境。在整個 2023 年第二季度，在非常具有挑戰性的情況下，我們繼續基於美洲資產地理多元化的 [A] 模型和我們靈活的生產路線提供非常一致的結果。兩個因素（技術難度） 中國的鋼鐵產量仍然很高，非常接近歷史水平，同時刺激鋼鐵消費的措施，特別是來自建築行業的措施，尚未反映在鋼鐵消費的動態中。市場。鑑於[訪問]的情景，中國的鋼鐵產量、中國每年的鋼材出口總量約為90噸左右。即使 EBITDA 背景是美國和歐洲等進口受限市場，這也影響了我們經營所在的市場，特別是巴西。

In this next slide, even before we start talking about Gerdau's financial results in the second quarter, I would like to say that we came to the end of the first half of the year with an accident frequency rate of 0.66 and this is below the 0.76 rate recorded in consolidated 2022, which represented the lowest rate ever recorded in our historic series. This performance reinforces (technical difficulty)

在下一張幻燈片中，甚至在我們開始談論 Gerdau 第二季度的財務業績之前，我想說的是，截至今年上半年末，我們的事故頻率為 0.66，低於 0.76 2022 年合併記錄的利率，這是我們歷史系列中記錄的最低利率。這個性能強化了（技術難度）

Therefore, as part of our digital transformation journey, we have invested in several artificial intelligence and Industry 4.0 initiatives

因此，作為我們數字化轉型之旅的一部分，我們投資了多項人工智能和工業 4.0 計劃

in our operations, to improve our monitoring of critical tasks and prevent accidents and enforce the safety and active care among our employees and partners. Now, in the next 2 slides I briefly bring you some highlights that reflect the results recorded by Gerdau in the second quarter. Later on, Japur will provide details of our financial performance. Even in the face of a challenging global macro scenario with a decline in steel consumption as I mentioned earlier, Gerdau posted between April and June of 2023, another quarter with financial consistent results with the best adjusted EBITDA for the period, which amounted to BRL 3.8 billion.

在我們的運營中，改善對關鍵任務的監控並預防事故，並加強員工和合作夥伴的安全和積極關懷。現在，在接下來的兩張幻燈片中，我將簡要介紹一些反映 Gerdau 在第二季度記錄的結果的亮點。稍後，Japur 將提供我們財務業績的詳細信息。即使面對我之前提到的鋼鐵消費下降等充滿挑戰的全球宏觀形勢，Gerdau 仍發布了2023 年4 月至6 月期間的財報，該季度的財務業績保持一致，調整後的EBITDA 達到最佳水平，達到3.8 巴西雷亞爾十億。

This performance reflects the continuity of the company's sustainable growth strategy, focus on the continuous generation of value for our [sales] (technical difficulty)

這一業績體現了公司可持續增長戰略的連續性，專注於為我們的【銷售】持續創造價值（技術難度）

and the integration of the process in this platform, it is possible to reduce the delivery forecast of orders placed by about 7 days. Gerdau is currently experiencing the best moment of its 122 year of history, a result of [its] cultural transformation, which has enabled the company to innovate and transform itself in the face of dynamic, different and challenging scenarios.

並將該流程整合到該平台中，可以將訂單的交貨預測縮短約7天。 Gerdau 目前正經歷其 122 年曆史中最好的時刻，這是文化轉型的結果，這使得公司能夠在面對動態、不同和充滿挑戰的情況時進行創新和轉型。

This agile and innovative mindset of the company, of our employees who work daily in several initiatives in search of continuous operating excellence, improving our ESG practices and offering products, solutions and services centered on the present and future needs of our customers and other stakeholders. And all of that ensures that Gerdau finds itself in a very high level of profitability and operating efficiency that is higher than its peers in the global industry.

公司和我們員工的這種敏捷和創新思維，他們每天致力於多項舉措，尋求持續卓越運營，改進我們的ESG 實踐，並提供以客戶和其他利益相關者當前和未來需求為中心的產品、解決方案和服務。所有這些都確保了 Gerdau 處於非常高水平的盈利能力和運營效率，高於全球行業的同行。

Now on the next slides, I will talk about the highlights of each of our business operations and the outlook for the markets where Gerdau operates.

現在，在下一張幻燈片中，我將討論我們每項業務運營的亮點以及 Gerdau 運營所在市場的前景。

The North America business operation continues to deliver sound results. In the second quarter, the PO adjusted EBITDA totaled BRL 1.8 billion, reflecting a still very resilient market. Our order backlog in the United States, for example, remains stable at a high level of 60 days, mainly influenced by nonresidential construction activities, infrastructure, energy and industry in general.

北美業務繼續取得良好業績。第二季度，PO 調整後 EBITDA 總計 18 億雷亞爾，反映出市場仍然非常有彈性。例如，我們在美國的訂單積壓保持穩定在 60 天的高水平，主要受到非住宅建築活動、基礎設施、能源和總體工業的影響。

The recent measures adopted by the U.S. government, such as the Inflation Reduction Act and the CHIP Act, have had a positive effect on the market. Although the inflationary landscape the interest rate hike, which reached its highest level in 22 years and a possible downturn in the local economy are points of attention, which may also impact steel consumption in the coming cycles.

美國政府近期採取的《降低通脹法案》、《CHIP法案》等措施對市場產生了積極影響。儘管通脹形勢、創22年來最高水平的加息以及當地經濟可能出現的下滑等問題值得關注，但也可能對未來週期的鋼鐵消費產生影響。

In this sense, our North America business operation remains well prepared. (technical difficulty) focus on improving the profitability and productivity of the mills, I would like to also highlight the startup of solar farm adjacent to our Midlothian site in Texas, with 230,000 solar panels. The farm has a capacity of 80 megawatts, which is expected to be reached already in August.

從這個意義上說，我們的北美業務運營仍然做好了充分的準備。 （技術難度）專注於提高工廠的盈利能力和生產力，我還想強調一下我們位於德克薩斯州中洛錫安工廠附近的太陽能發電廠的啟動，該發電廠擁有 230,000 塊太陽能電池板。該發電場裝機容量為 80 兆瓦，預計 8 月份即可達到。

The initiative reflects Gerdau's plans to increase the use of renewable energy at its industrial units in all the countries what it's present in the Americas. And this is part of our commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The solar plant will contribute to reduce the carbon emissions at the Midlothian site by 65,000 tons of CO2 equivalent annually, equivalent to more than 10% of the mill's emissions.

該舉措反映了蓋爾道計劃在其在美洲的所有國家的工業單位中增加可再生能源的使用。這是我們減少溫室氣體排放承諾的一部分。該太陽能發電廠每年將有助於減少中洛錫安工廠 65,000 噸二氧化碳當量的碳排放，相當於工廠排放量的 10% 以上。

Moving on to the next slide. I'm now talking about our special steel (technical difficulty) In addition, the oil and gas segment remains flat, approaching a monthly average of 900 rig counts over the months.

轉到下一張幻燈片。我現在說的是我們的特鋼（技術難度） 另外，石油和天然氣板塊保持平穩，幾個月來月均鑽機數量接近900台。

In turn, the outlook for the special steel market in Brazil continues to be influenced by uncertainties linked to access to credit lines and the high interest rate, contributing to the lower demand for vehicles. In the second quarter, as a result of plant shutdowns and reduced shifts, it is estimated that around 90,000 units, including light and heavy vehicles, were no longer produced. The National Association of Vehicle Manufacturers, ANFAVEA, even [aided a] (technical difficulty)

反過來，巴西特殊鋼市場的前景繼續受到信貸額度和高利率相關不確定性的影響，導致車輛需求下降。第二季度，由於工廠關閉和輪班減少，預計將不再生產約 90,000 輛汽車，包括輕型和重型汽車。美國汽車製造商協會ANFAVEA甚至[援助了]（技術難度）

I would also highlight that the competitiveness of the vehicle sector, especially auto parts, was lower this quarter, this half year due to the depreciation of the U.S. dollar.

我還要強調的是，由於美元貶值，本季度、這半年，汽車行業特別是汽車零部件的競爭力較低。

Moving on to the next slide, I would like now to talk about the long and flat steel scenario in Brazil, whose performance in the second quarter reflects a reduction in steel consumption in the country in several industrial sectors. According to data from the Brazil Steel Institute, domestic shipments fell 5.7% in the first half of 2023 when compared to the same period last year. Initiatives such as the new fiscal framework and progress in tax reform, coupled with a possible drop in interest rates, have not yet been enough to unlock the Brazilian economy. It is worth remembering that steel consumption is a leading indicator of GDP, and in this sense, it is important that there is a progress in actions aimed at improving the competitiveness of Brazilian industry such as Custo Brasil, the Brazil costs, so that the steel sector can start a new cycle of sustainable growth.

轉到下一張幻燈片，我現在想談談巴西的長材和扁材情況，其第二季度的表現反映了該國多個工業部門的鋼材消耗量的減少。巴西鋼鐵協會的數據顯示，2023年上半年國內出貨量較去年同期下降5.7%。新的財政框架和稅收改革的進展等舉措，加上可能的利率下降，還不足以釋放巴西經濟的活力。值得記住的是，鋼鐵消費是 GDP 的先行指標，從這個意義上說，重要的是，旨在提高巴西工業競爭力的行動取得進展，如 Custo Brasil、巴西成本，從而使鋼鐵行業可以開啟新的可持續增長周期。

Initiatives that seek to boost the competitiveness of the steel sector in Brazil and fair market conditions are also crucial to address the world's surplus, mainly in China, as I said earlier in my presentation. And this resulted in an increase in direct and indirect imports of steel and also imports of machines and equipment.

正如我之前在演講中所說，旨在提高巴西鋼鐵行業競爭力和公平市場條件的舉措對於解決世界（主要是中國）的過剩問題也至關重要。這導致直接和間接鋼鐵進口以及機器和設備進口的增加。

According to the members from the Brazil Steel Institute, Brazil's steel exports were up more than 43% in the first half of 2023 year-on-year, totaling 2.2 million tons. Chinese products account for more than 50% of this total amount.

據巴西鋼鐵協會成員介紹，2023年上半年巴西鋼材出口量同比增長超過43%，總計220萬噸。中國產品佔這一總量的50%以上。

As a positive outlook for the Brazilian steel market, there was a 30% increase in the number of real estate launches in the second quarter when compared to the previous quarter. The city of Sao Paulo, for example, is already showing in June the resumption of launches, with sales when compared to the months of April and May, posting a 9% increase in the period according to data from [Seko vi] Sao Paulo. This scenario is supported by better financing conditions.

由於巴西鋼鐵市場前景樂觀，第二季度房地產推出數量較上一季度增加了 30%。例如，聖保羅市已經在 6 月份恢復了發布，根據聖保羅 [Seko vi] 的數據，與 4 月和 5 月相比，該時期的銷售額增長了 9%。這種情況得到了更好的融資條件的支持。

The number of active construction sites in Brazil remained at a record level in June, above 10,500 units, an increase of 14.5% year-on-year. In addition, I would like to mention that the Industrial Construction segment remains stable with good demand from the pulp and paper sector, for example.

巴西6月份活躍建築工地數量仍保持在歷史最高水平，超過10,500套，同比增長14.5%。此外，我想提一下，工業建築領域保持穩定，例如紙漿和造紙行業的需求良好。

Another factor that should positively impact the agri business sector in the second half of the year is the recently announced crop plan of more than BRL 360 billion. In turn, retail sales in the second quarter remained flat when compared to the immediately previous period. We have already seen some impact from the one-off government aid measures in the popular housing program called Minha Casa, Minha Vida.

下半年對農業企業部門產生積極影響的另一個因素是最近宣布的超過 3600 億雷亞爾的作物計劃。反過來，第二季度的零售額與上一季度相比保持持平。我們已經看到了名為 Minha Casa, Minha Vida 的受歡迎住房計劃中一次性政府援助措施的一些影響。

But the sector's performance remains hindered by high interest rates and credit crunches. In addition, I anticipate a return to public and private investment in infrastructure works, which will drive the country's growth such as possible expansion works in ports in Sierra and Santa Catarina and the new Sabesp project here in Sao Paulo.

但該行業的表現仍然受到高利率和信貸緊縮的阻礙。此外，我預計基礎設施工程的公共和私人投資將會回歸，這將推動該國的增長，例如塞拉利昂和聖卡塔琳娜州港口可能的擴建工程以及聖保羅的新 Sabesp 項目。

There was even a signal from the federal government regarding public investment of around BRL 70 billion in highways and railroads over the next 4 years. Auctions in the energy sector for the construction of transmission towers, also expected for this half year, should have a positive impact on steel demand in the coming cycles, as well as the new PAC or growth acceleration plan to be launched by the federal government in the next few days.

聯邦政府甚至發出了關於未來 4 年內對高速公路和鐵路投入約 700 億雷亞爾的公共投資的信號。能源行業用於建設輸電塔的拍賣預計也會在今年半年進行，這將對未來週期的鋼鐵需求以及聯邦政府將於 2019 年推出的新 PAC 或增長加速計劃產生積極影響。接下來的幾天。

We now move to the next slide. Generally speaking, the drop in commodity prices and the appreciation of many currencies vis-a-vis the U.S. dollar, and the high interest rates, bring about a very challenging economic growth scenario for the South American region. In Argentina, steel demand remained firm in the second quarter, mainly driven by the construction sector, which led us to record the best EBITDA for the operation in our historical series in the period.

我們現在轉到下一張幻燈片。總體而言，大宗商品價格下跌、多種貨幣對美元升值以及高利率給南美地區的經濟增長帶來了非常嚴峻的挑戰。在阿根廷，第二季度鋼鐵需求保持堅挺，主要受到建築行業的推動，這使我們創下了該時期歷史系列中最佳的 EBITDA。

The inflationary pressure, the effects of the drought and the presidential elections scheduled for October remain a point of attention for the future performance of the local markets in the coming quarters. The scenario in Uruguay remains positive, reflecting good levels of steel consumption, particularly in the agri business sector, which are close to historical records.

通脹壓力、乾旱的影響以及定於10月舉行的總統選舉仍然是未來幾個季度當地市場表現的關注點。烏拉圭的情況仍然樂觀，反映出鋼鐵消費水平良好，特別是在農業企業領域，接近歷史記錄。

In Peru, we continue to monitor political tension, social conflicts and climate issues linked to El Nino, and also its impact on the domestic market. The forecast, despite the uncertainties, is that the economy will recover throughout the second half of 2023, [stimulating] the demand for steel mainly coming from the construction industry. I will now turn the floor over to Japur, and then I'll be back to talk about our ESG journey and also to answer your questions.

在秘魯，我們繼續關注與厄爾尼諾現象相關的政治緊張局勢、社會衝突和氣候問題及其對國內市場的影響。儘管存在不確定性，但預測經濟將在 2023 年下半年復蘇，[刺激]主要來自建築行業的鋼鐵需求。現在我將把發言權交給 Japur，然後我將回來談論我們的 ESG 之旅並回答你們的問題。

Thank you, Gustavo. Hello, everyone. It's always a great pleasure to be here with you once again for our earnings release call, and I hope that you're all well. Well, let's start with Slide 12. And here, we'll talk a little bit about our working capital and cash conversion cycle. In the chart on the left of the screen, we see the evolution at the end of the period of our working capital and how it has evolved in the last few quarters as well as our cash conversion cycle.

謝謝你，古斯塔沃。大家好。很高興再次與您一起參加我們的收益發布電話會議，我希望您一切順利。好吧，讓我們從幻燈片 12 開始。在這裡，我們將討論一下我們的營運資金和現金轉換週期。在屏幕左側的圖表中，我們看到了營運資金期末的演變以及過去幾個季度的演變以及我們的現金轉換週期。

At the end of the quarter, we had a working capital of BRL 16.4 billion, with a slight increase of BRL 36 million when compared to the previous quarter. It is worth noting that this is the third consecutive quarter in which we have reduced the level of inventories in our business, which signals that our action plan and business operations are bearing fruit and that we should see a reduction in working capital in the second half of the year.

截至季末，我們的營運資金為164億雷亞爾，較上季度小幅增加0.36億雷亞爾。值得注意的是，這是我們連續第三個季度降低業務中的庫存水平，這表明我們的行動計劃和業務運營正在取得成果，下半年我們應該會看到營運資金的減少今年的。

We understand that there is still room for further reduction in both our working capital and also our cash conversion cycle. Now moving to the right side of the slide, we will talk about our quarter's cash flow. Our adjusted EBITDA, as mentioned by Gustavo, our EBITDA stood at BRL 3.792 billion with a margin of 21%. It is worth noting that we had an average dollar 5% weaker this quarter, which affects both the profitability of our exports from Brazil and the currency translation of the results generated mainly in North America.

我們知道，我們的營運資金和現金轉換週期仍有進一步減少的空間。現在轉到幻燈片的右側，我們將討論本季度的現金流。我們調整後的 EBITDA，正如 Gustavo 提到的，我們的 EBITDA 為 37.92 億雷亞爾，利潤率為 21%。值得注意的是，本季度美元平均貶值 5%，這既影響了我們從巴西出口的盈利能力，也影響了主要在北美產生的業績的貨幣換算。

We allocated BRL 569 million in working capital. And here, the difference (technical difficulty) [compared to the number we just mentioned], and the number of our cash flow is basically attributed to the exchange rate variation of the working capital of the companies located outside Brazil. We also invested BRL 1.229 billion in CapEx this quarter, in line with our guidance of BRL 5 billion for 2023.

我們分配了 5.69 億雷亞爾的營運資金。在這裡，差異（技術難度）[與我們剛才提到的數字相比]，以及我們現金流量的數量基本上歸因於位於巴西境外的公司的營運資金的匯率變化。本季度我們還在資本支出上投資了 12.29 億雷亞爾，符合我們 2023 年 50 億雷亞爾的指導。

Looking at the cash flow after net interest and income tax disbursements, which historically occur in greater concentration in the second quarter, we ended the period with a free cash flow of BRL 784 million.

從歷史上更集中於第二季度的淨利息和所得稅支付後的現金流來看，我們結束該期間的自由現金流為 7.84 億雷亞爾。

In the chart below, on the right-hand side, we have the historic evolution quarter-on-quarter of free cash flow generation since 2014. And here, the second quarters of each year are highlighted in the chart in green. So I draw your attention to the continuous and positive cash flow generation that we've been experiencing in recent years.

在下圖右側，我們看到了自 2014 年以來自由現金流生成的季度環比歷史性演變。在這裡，每年的第二季度在圖表中以綠色突出顯示。因此，我提請您注意我們近年來所經歷的持續且積極的現金流生成。

Now let's move to the next slide. And now I will talk a bit about our liquidity and debt. We continue to post an excellent level of leverage with a net debt-to-EBITDA ratio of 0.37x. This quarter, we reduced our gross debt by BRL 1.6 billion mainly due to the payment of BRL 931 million of the 2023 bond and BRL 600 million of the first tranche of the 16th series debenture.

現在讓我們轉到下一張幻燈片。現在我將談談我們的流動性和債務。我們繼續保持出色的槓桿水平，淨債務與 EBITDA 比率為 0.37 倍。本季度，我們的總債務減少了 16 億雷亞爾，主要是由於支付了 9.31 億雷亞爾的 2023 年債券和 6 億雷亞爾第一批 16 系列債券。

Thus, we ended June with a gross debt of BRL 10.7 billion. This is our lowest debt since September of 2007, meaning more than 15 years ago. We ended the quarter with a net debt of BRL 6.5 billion, very much in line as you can see in the bottom of this slide, much in line with the financial policy parameters and very close to what we believe to be our optimal capital structure for the business. The average cost of our BRL-denominated debt is around 105% of CDI while our dollar denominated debt has an average cost of 5.6% per year. In the chart on the right-hand side of the page, and now I will detail our liquidity. We have here the debt profile. I mean how much we have of available cash. And also here, we have the debt amortization schedule. Considering our cash position at the end of the quarter of BRL 4.2 billion, plus our revolver facility of USD 875 million fully available and not drawn, we have a liquidity position of (technical Difficulty][almost BRL 8.5 billion].

因此，截至 6 月份，我們的債務總額為 107 億雷亞爾。這是自 2007 年 9 月（即 15 年前）以來我們的最低債務水平。本季度結束時，我們的淨債務為 65 億雷亞爾，正如您在這張幻燈片底部看到的那樣，非常符合財務政策參數，並且非常接近我們認為的最佳資本結構。這生意。我們以雷亞爾計價的債務的平均成本約為 CDI 的 105%，而以美元計價的債務的平均成本為每年 5.6%。在頁面右側的圖表中，現在我將詳細說明我們的流動性。我們這裡有債務概況。我的意思是我們有多少可用現金。這裡還有債務攤銷時間表。考慮到我們季度末的現金頭寸為 42 億雷亞爾，加上我們完全可用且未提取的 8.75 億美元循環貸款額度，我們的流動性頭寸為（技術難度）[近 85 億雷亞爾]。

Now speaking briefly about our debt amortization schedule, I would like to highlight the extension of our debt with long-term maturity profile this quarter went from 78%, which is what we had in the previous quarter, to 92%. Our next most important maturity, as you can notice in the chart, will only take place in 2027 when our bond matures. This well balanced and well distributed schedule, together with our healthy capital structure, allows us to make the necessary investment in the years to come, to ensure the evolution and sustainability of our business, always focused on generating more value to our different stakeholders with whom we interact.

現在簡要談談我們的債務攤銷時間表，我想強調一下，本季度我們的長期債務期限從上一季度的 78% 延長至 92%。正如您在圖表中註意到的，我們的下一個最重要的到期日將僅在 2027 年債券到期時發生。這種均衡且分佈良好的時間表，加上我們健康的資本結構，使我們能夠在未來幾年進行必要的投資，以確保我們業務的發展和可持續性，始終專注於為不同的利益相關者創造更多價值我們互動。

And to finish this part, due to the results of the second quarter of this year, the Board of Directors of Gerdau S.A. approved the payout of dividends in the amount of BRL 752 million or BRL 0.43 per share. (technical difficulty) will be on August 29. Metalurgica Gerdau, in turn, will pay out BRL 268 million or BRL 23 -- 0.26 per share, also in the form of dividends. And this payment will occur on August 30.

最後，根據今年第二季度的業績，Gerdau S.A. 董事會批准支付 7.52 億雷亞爾或每股 0.43 雷亞爾的股息。 （技術難度）將於 8 月 29 日進行。Metaurgica Gerdau 將支付 2.68 億雷亞爾，即每股 23 - 0.26 雷亞爾，同樣以股息的形式。這筆付款將於 8 月 30 日進行。

In both cases, both for Metalurgica Gerdau and Gerdau S.A., the payment will be made on the basis of the shareholding position on August 18. Thank you so much for your attention. And now I turn the floor back over to Gustavo to talk more about our investment in our new sustainable mining platform, as previously mentioned.

在這兩種情況下，Metalurgica Gerdau 和 Gerdau S.A. 都將根據 8 月 18 日的持股情況進行付款。非常感謝您的關注。現在我將發言權轉回古斯塔沃，更多地討論我們對新的可持續採礦平台的投資，如前所述。

Thank you, Japur. In the following (technical difficulty) will detail the sustainable mining investment plan, which we announced (technical difficulty) at an event held at the Gerdau Museum of Mines and Metal in Belo Horizonte. We will BRL 3.2 billion in the period between 2023 and 2026 in a new sustainable mining platform in Minas Gerais, reinforcing the state's role as a growth platform for Gerdau in Brazil. This amount is part of a cycle of investments of more than BRL 6 billion made by Gerdau in the state of Minas Gerais in recent years to modernize, to perform a technological upgrade, improve environmental practices and also expand its local operations.

謝謝你，賈普爾。下面（技術難度）將詳細介紹可持續採礦投資計劃，該計劃是我們在貝洛哈里桑塔蓋爾道礦業和金屬博物館舉辦的活動中宣布的（技術難度）。我們將在 2023 年至 2026 年間投資 32 億雷亞爾在米納斯吉拉斯州建立一個新的可持續採礦平台，加強該州作為巴西蓋爾道增長平台的作用。這筆資金是 Gerdau 近年來在米納斯吉拉斯州進行的超過 60 億雷亞爾投資週期的一部分，旨在實現現代化、進行技術升級、改善環境實踐並擴大當地業務。

Mining operations at the Miguel Burnier mine, located in the district of Ouro Preto, are scheduled to start up at the end of 2025. With this, our annual iron ore processing capacity, we reach of 5.5 million tons. This project will allow Gerdau to increase the competitiveness of its operations and expand its steel production in Minas Gerais in the future.

位於歐魯普雷圖區的 Miguel Burnier 礦的採礦作業計劃於 2025 年底啟動。至此，我們的鐵礦石年加工能力將達到 550 萬噸。該項目將使蓋爾道未來能夠提高其運營競爭力並擴大其在米納斯吉拉斯州的鋼鐵產量。

Now I will say that this investment, which includes equipment and processes with the most modern technologies available, will follow the best mining practices, and we will use a dry stacking method to dispose of 100% of the mining tailings, eliminating the use to -- the need to use a dam.

現在我要說的是，這項投資包括採用最現代技術的設備和工藝，將遵循最佳採礦實踐，我們將採用乾堆法處理 100% 的採礦尾礦，消除使用 - - 需要使用水壩。

The use of an ore pipeline for the transportation of iron ore will also bring important logistic gains, in addition to reinforcing our commitment to sustainable mining.

除了加強我們對可持續採礦的承諾之外，使用礦石管道運輸鐵礦石還將帶來重要的物流收益。

I would like to highlight that this new sustainable mining platform is also an important decarbonization initiative, as it will ensure steel production with an even lower carbon footprint than the one we have today, as we will have high-quality ore. I highlight the high-quality ore with a higher iron content and better agglomeration requires less coal in its production process and improves the energy and operating efficiency of the blast furnace, which contributes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, making it a relevant product for the decarbonization process of the global steel industry.

我想強調的是，這個新的可持續採礦平台也是一項重要的脫碳舉措，因為它將確保鋼鐵生產的碳足跡比我們今天的碳足跡更低，因為我們將擁有高質量的礦石。我強調的是，優質礦石含鐵量更高，團聚性更好，在生產過程中需要更少的煤炭，提高了高爐的能源和運行效率，有助於減少溫室氣體排放，使其成為脫碳的相關產品全球鋼鐵工業的進程。

Currently, as a result of our sustainable production metrics, Gerdau already has one of the lowest average greenhouse gas emissions at 0.89 tons of CO2 equivalent per ton of steel, which is approximately half the global industry average of 1.91 tons of CO2 equivalent per ton of steel, according to the World Steel Association. And by 2031, our target is to lower carbon emissions to 0.83 tons of CO2 equivalent per ton of steel.

目前，根據我們的可持續生產指標，蓋爾道已成為平均溫室氣體排放量最低的國家之一，每噸鋼材排放0.89 噸二氧化碳當量，大約是全球行業平均排放量（每噸鋼材1.91 噸二氧化碳當量）的一半。據世界鋼鐵協會稱。到 2031 年，我們的目標是將每噸鋼材的碳排放量降低至 0.83 噸二氧化碳當量。

And this higher quality ore that will be processed in Miguel Burnier will supply Gerdau's 4 steel production units in the state, also taking these mills to another level of sustainability practices. Finally, I would like to highlight that the independent certifier SRK Consulting has prepared a report certifying the iron ore reserves at the Miguel Burnier mine. And this is a very important milestone for this investment in sustainable mining. According to the report, Gerdau now holds certified reserves of 776 million tons of iron ore. This document has been prepared in according with subchapter 1300 of Regulation SK issued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in compliance with the technical report standard established by that regulation.

這種將在 Miguel Burnier 加工的更高品質礦石將供應 Gerdau 在該州的 4 個鋼鐵生產廠，同時也將這些鋼廠的可持續發展實踐提升到另一個水平。最後，我想強調的是，獨立認證機構 SRK Consulting 已準備了一份報告，證明 Miguel Burnier 礦的鐵礦石儲量。這是可持續採礦投資的一個非常重要的里程碑。報告稱，蓋爾道目前擁有核證鐵礦石儲量7.76億噸。本文件是根據美國證券交易委員會頒布的 SK 法規第 1300 章編寫的，符合該法規制定的技術報告標準。

Considering the expected annual production level of 5 million 500 (sic) tons of iron ore, the certified reserves guarantee a 40-year life span for the event investment, reinforcing Gerdau's commitment to the socioeconomic development of the state of Minas Gerais today and in the future.

考慮到鐵礦石的預期年產量為500 萬500 噸，核證儲量保證了此次活動投資的40 年壽命，強化了蓋爾道對米納斯吉拉斯州當前和未來社會經濟發展的承諾。未來。

Now I would like to thank you all for listening to our comments, and we are now available to answer questions and also detail points of greater interest to you.

現在我要感謝大家聆聽我們的評論，我們現在可以回答問題並詳細說明你們更感興趣的點。

(Operator Instructions) Our first question comes from [Kyle], an analyst from BTG Pactual. Kyle , you may proceed.

（操作員指令）我們的第一個問題來自 BTG Pactual 的分析師 [Kyle]。凱爾，你可以繼續了。

Hello. Good morning, everyone. Thank you. Can you hear me well? I have 2 questions here. The first question is about your results in North America. It's interesting to see that you're able to sustain margins above that level of 25%, even in a quarter when you had lower shipments, you had several scheduled and nonscheduled maintenance shutdowns.

你好。大家，早安。謝謝。你能聽清楚我說話嗎？我這裡有兩個問題。第一個問題是關於你們在北美的結果。有趣的是，您能夠將利潤率維持在 25% 以上的水平，即使在出貨量較低的季度，您也經歷了多次計劃內和非計劃內的維護停機。

And maybe now with the recovery anticipated for the third quarter, we see some slight movement of expansion in the metallic spread. And when we put that together with comments from your peers, the impression is that we could continue to see high levels and still moving into the third quarter. I would like to know your impression about how you see that profitability of margins going forward? And now is still focusing in the third quarter, but if you have any comments about the fourth quarter and what you anticipate for 2024, that will be great.

也許現在隨著第三季度的複蘇預期，我們會看到金屬價差出現一些輕微的擴張。當我們將其與同行的評論結合起來時，我們的印像是我們可以繼續看到高水平，並且仍然進入第三季度。我想知道您對未來利潤率盈利能力的看法？現在仍然關注第三季度，但如果您對第四季度以及對 2024 年的預期有任何評論，那就太好了。

And my second question is about dividends. This quarter, we saw that you paid dividend in line with your policy, 30% of net income and 30% of cash generation, and the buyback program had a slowdown. I just want to understand, because given the fact that we are seeing your net debt slightly below that indication of BRL 7 billion. And also putting that together with Japur's comments during the presentation, that we have a great possibility of seeing working capital in the second quarter because you paid more taxes now in the second quarter, maybe that leads me to understand that you should use more cash now in the second half. So I just want to understand whether the company still thinks that you will maintain that net debt at BRL 7 billion, and that would indicate that your entire cash generation in the second half could be paid in terms of dividends and whether your -- or where you believe you would be a little bit more cautious given the current market situation. So I would just want some light in terms of dividend payout.

我的第二個問題是關於股息。本季度，我們看到您按照政策支付了股息，淨利潤的 30% 和現金生成的 30%，並且回購計劃有所放緩。我只是想了解一下，因為我們發現您的淨債務略低於 70 億雷亞爾的指示。並將其與賈普爾在演示期間的評論結合起來，我們很有可能在第二季度看到營運資金，因為你在第二季度繳納了更多稅款，也許這讓我明白你現在應該使用更多現金在下半場。所以我只是想了解公司是否仍然認為您將把淨債務維持在 70 億雷亞爾，這將表明您下半年產生的全部現金都可以以股息的形式支付，以及您的——或者在哪裡您認為考慮到當前的市場形勢，您會更加謹慎。所以我只想了解股息支付方面的一些情況。

[Kyle], thank you for your question. I will start by answering your first question and talking a little bit about North America and then I'll talk about dividends. Now about margins in North America, our projections indicate that we would have flat margins throughout the next quarter. On the 1 hand, the volumes in the backlog are still very resilient. Now when we look at our shipments and even when we compare ourselves to our peers, we see a general drop in demand. We had a higher decline because of our mill in Canada, Whitby. We had a one-off problem in our Charlotte mill. But in general, this 10% drop in demand was already expected, and I think it will resume normal levels. And due to the number of orders we are receiving, I think that this is a level that will be maintained throughout the third quarter.

[凱爾]，謝謝你的提問。我將首先回答你的第一個問題並談論一下北美，然後我將談論股息。現在關於北美的利潤率，我們的預測表明我們下一季度的利潤率將持平。一方面，積壓的數量仍然非常有彈性。現在，當我們查看我們的出貨量時，甚至當我們與同行進行比較時，我們都會看到需求普遍下降。由於我們位於加拿大惠特比的工廠，我們的跌幅更大。我們的夏洛特工廠遇到了一次性問題。但總的來說，需求下降10%已經在預料之中，我認為會恢復正常水平。鑑於我們收到的訂單數量，我認為這個水平將在整個第三季度保持不變。

And well, the fourth quarter has a typical seasonality. So that's why it's difficult now to tell you how big that seasonality will be, but our backlog remains very sound. We still have to take into account that we haven't yet seen orders related to the major incentive packages. If I look at our backlog, the infrastructure deal and everything else, we haven't seen large orders coming, stemming from this package. Even incentives related to renewable energies, we are now seeing an increase in our backlog of steel being delivered to the construction of solar farms. But if you look at the magnitude of these packages, we see -- we anticipate future demand coming from these packages. And this also could anticipate the risk of a drop in demand in view of the macroeconomic scenario in North America. In terms of scrap, we concluded our purchases of scrap. Last Friday, the price has been flat in terms of comparison with the past few months. Now as for prices, prices remain flat -- costs. I think we're able to capture a lot of good opportunities in relation to energy. So in general, Kyle, in my view, things remain very stable in North America, and it should remain in this quarter. In the fourth quarter, it's difficult to tell. There were years where there was no seasonality in some other years, seasonality was stronger. And in 2024, should be very similar to what we're seeing now. The spread levels will be maintained. So in general, our business in North America is very sound, very solid.

第四季度具有典型的季節性。因此，這就是為什麼現在很難告訴您季節性因素有多大，但我們的積壓訂單仍然非常充足。我們仍然必須考慮到我們還沒有看到與主要激勵方案相關的訂單。如果我看看我們的積壓訂單、基礎設施交易和其他一切，我們還沒有看到來自這個計劃的大訂單。即使是與可再生能源相關的激勵措施，我們現在也看到用於太陽能發電場建設的積壓鋼材有所增加。但如果你看看這些包裹的規模，我們就會發現——我們預計未來的需求將來自這些包裹。鑑於北美宏觀經濟形勢，這也可以預測需求下降的風險。在廢鋼方面，我們結束了廢鋼採購。上週五，價格與過去幾個月相比持平。現在就價格而言，價格保持不變——成本。我認為我們能夠抓住很多與能源相關的好機會。所以總的來說，凱爾，在我看來，北美的情況仍然非常穩定，並且應該保持在本季度。到了第四季度，就很難說了。有些年份沒有季節性，有些年份季節性較強。到 2024 年，情況應該與我們現在看到的非常相似。價差水平將維持不變。所以總的來說，我們在北美的業務非常健全、非常穩固。

So this is how we see our business. And now I'll give the floor to Japur. But if you -- Japur, if you want to add anything else about North America, just go ahead, feel free to say.

這就是我們如何看待我們的業務。現在我請賈普爾發言。但是，如果您 - Japur，如果您想添加任何有關北美的其他內容，請儘管說。

I just want a further clarification, because you said that in terms of volumes and shipments despite that reduction because of maintenance shutdowns, you still expect stable shipments in the second quarter, right?

我只是想進一步澄清一下，因為你說，從銷量和出貨量來看，儘管由於停工維修而有所減少，但你仍然預計第二季度出貨量會穩定，對嗎？

Yes. Now we delayed some deliveries due to these 2 one-off events. When we extended the shutdown in Whitby, we had to move in to make a transfer from Canada to the U.S. So there was just a drop of 2 percentage points when compared to the average of other players in the U.S., but we already recovered that number. Therefore, this drop in demand of 10% when you compare in the first and the second quarter, I think we already reached a demand level that should be in place for the coming quarters. Okay. Japur.

是的。現在，由於這兩個一次性事件，我們推遲了一些交貨。當我們延長惠特比的停擺時間時，我們不得不從加拿大轉會到美國。因此，與美國其他球員的平均水平相比，只下降了 2 個百分點，但我們已經恢復了這個數字。因此，當你比較第一季度和第二季度的需求下降 10% 時，我認為我們已經達到了未來幾個季度應該達到的需求水平。好的。賈普爾。

Now in terms of dividends, [Kyle], I will start with our net debt. At the end of the quarter, we ended close to BRL 6 billion of net debt. So this is pretty much in line with what we expected. Gross debt was slightly lower, but the cash was lower due to the important disbursements we had during the quarter with the maturity of some important -- the debenture and the bond and payment of taxes that was quite relevant this quarter.

現在就股息而言，[凱爾]，我將從我們的淨債務開始。截至本季度末，我們結束了近 60 億雷亞爾的淨債務。所以這與我們的預期非常一致。總債務略有下降，但現金有所下降，因為我們在本季度進行了重要的支出，一些重要的項目到期了——債券和債券以及與本季度非常相關的稅款。

But now when we think about dividends, we even move forward with our policy. Both in the case of Gerdau S.A. and Metalurgica, we paid a little -- slightly over 30%. So despite the fact that the results were slightly worse in terms of corporate net income, we maintained the same cash distribution per share in relation to what we did in the previous quarter. In the coming quarters, in the next quarters, I think we will continue to monitor the performance of the market, and we will continue to monitor our business. There will be probably some additional pressures even though we believe -- we truly believe that there should be a reduction in working capital in the next quarters in relation to our position today.

但現在，當我們考慮股息時，我們甚至會推進我們的政策。對於 Gerdau S.A. 和 Metalurgica，我們支付了一點——略高於 30%。因此，儘管公司淨利潤方面的業績稍差，但我們仍保持與上一季度相同的每股現金分配。在接下來的幾個季度，在接下來的幾個季度，我認為我們將繼續監控市場的表現，我們將繼續監控我們的業務。儘管我們相信——我們確實相信，與我們今天的狀況相比，未來幾個季度的營運資本應該減少，但可能還會有一些額外的壓力。

And on the other hand, whenever we think about CapEx disbursement, the 1 that we have this year, year-to-date, it is below the average. If I were to take that BRL 5 billion, as I mentioned in the guidance, in addition to the disbursements that we mentioned specifically for Gerdau Next, they didn't occur yet. I mean it is about BRL 2.1 billion in terms of cash disbursement vis-a-vis that BRL 5 billion.

另一方面，每當我們考慮今年迄今為止的資本支出支出時，它都低於平均水平。正如我在指南中提到的，如果我要拿走那 50 億雷亞爾，除了我們專門為 Gerdau Next 提到的支出外，它們還沒有發生。我的意思是，就現金支出而言，大約為 21 億雷亞爾，而 50 億雷亞爾。

So there are other elements that may compensate that cash generation that we expect to see in the coming quarters. We remain very optimistic with cash generation, and we will continue to pursue our policy of not reducing significantly our net debt vis-a-vis our optimal capital structure. Well, truth be told, that it is the third consecutive year that we've been talking about a possible taxation of dividends and interest on equity. So not only our treasury department, but also our tax area. I mean we are monitoring that very closely, not only ourselves, but all of the other companies in Brazil. So we are following that very [place].

因此，還有其他因素可以彌補我們預計在未來幾個季度看到的現金產生。我們對現金產生仍然非常樂觀，我們將繼續奉行不大幅減少淨債務與最佳資本結構的政策。好吧，說實話，這是我們連續第三年討論可能對股息和股權利息徵稅的問題。因此，不僅是我們的財政部，還有我們的稅區。我的意思是，我們正在非常密切地監控這一點，不僅是我們自己，還有巴西的所有其他公司。所以我們正在跟踪那個[地方]。

And regardless of how things will advance, we may be more or less assertive, let's say, in terms of dividend payouts in the coming quarters.

無論事態如何發展，我們可能或多或少會在未來幾個季度的股息支付方面表現得更加自信。

Our second question comes from Daniel Sasson, a sell-side analyst from Itau BBA. So please open his camera.

我們的第二個問題來自 Itau BBA 的賣方分析師 Daniel Sasson。所以請打開他的相機。

Werneck, Japur. My first question relates to CapEx. Looking at the chart of your presentation, when you show the disbursement profile of BRL 3.2 billion of investments in this new mining platform, it seems that the disbursements in 2024 should be probably be 3 times larger than that of 2023. So should it be reasonable to imagine that your BRL 5 billion CapEx will increase next year? Or there are other areas that maybe you could postpone in terms of postponing investments, so then you would have a flat CapEx in 2024 vis-a-vis 2023?

韋爾內克，賈普爾。我的第一個問題與資本支出有關。看看你的演示圖表，當你展示這個新挖礦平台32億雷亞爾投資的支付情況時，看來2024年的支付額應該是2023年的3倍。所以這應該是合理的嗎？想像一下明年您的資本支出將增加50 億雷亞爾嗎？或者還有其他領域您可能可以推遲投資，這樣您在 2024 年的資本支出將與 2023 年持平？

I know that you don't have any approved guidance, but this could be helpful for us. My second question has to do with Brazil. We've seen imports at least when I look at SSX and ABR, exports increasing, even in a period when the domestic market, the premium is not as high when compared to historical levels. I mean, the long steel premium in the domestic market is around 5%.

我知道您沒有任何經批准的指導，但這可能對我們有幫助。我的第二個問題與巴西有關。至少當我觀察 SSX 和 ABR 時，我們看到進口量有所增加，出口量也在增加，即使在國內市場的時期，溢價與歷史水平相比並不那麼高。我的意思是，國內市場的長材溢價在5%左右。

So what do you think can justify this increase of imports? And how do you see the competition dynamics in the domestic market more specifically?

那麼您認為進口增加的合理性是什麼？您如何更具體地看待國內市場的競爭動態？

Daniel, it's a pleasure to talk to you. I can answer both questions, but Japur, you can jump in if you think it's important. I mean, it's -- there is no guidance for CapEx for the next coming years, but we'll be able to continue to be very conservative when it comes to disbursements or CapEx spending. So there is no expectation on the part of the company to significantly increase our investments, our disbursements. So we will remain conservative. So when we approve an investment of BRL 3.2 billion that will be spent in a certain period of time, this will necessarily have to fit into a spending level that we deem adequate.

丹尼爾，很高興與你交談。我可以回答這兩個問題，但是 Japur，如果你認為這很重要，你可以介入。我的意思是，未來幾年沒有關於資本支出的指導，但在支出或資本支出方面我們將能夠繼續非常保守。因此，公司並不期望大幅增加我們的投資和支出。所以我們會保持保守。因此，當我們批准在一段時間內支出的32億雷亞爾的投資時，這必然必須符合我們認為足夠的支出水平。

I mean, it has -- I mean, even in a very complex scenario that we be experiencing right now. Therefore, I would say that we will continue to be very conservative. We will remain very conservative. So this is not a guidance, but there is no estimate to grow our CapEx level, at least in the next coming years.

我的意思是，即使是在我們現在正在經歷的非常複雜的情況下。因此，我想說我們將繼續非常保守。我們將保持非常保守。因此，這不是一個指導，但預計我們的資本支出水平不會提高，至少在未來幾年是這樣。

In terms of imports -- imports in Brazil, this is a concerning issue because it's not very rational. When we look at a rational market situation, I mean, we could draw a correlation with import premium using the known variables. By doing so, we can arrive at some good conclusions because we've been in the market for a long time. But the world at the moment, it's being flooded with Chinese steel, and we know that this is still highly subsidized.

就進口而言——巴西的進口，這是一個令人擔憂的問題，因為它不是很理性。我的意思是，當我們觀察理性的市場情況時，我們可以使用已知變量得出與進口溢價的相關性。通過這樣做，我們可以得出一些好的結論，因為我們已經在市場上呆了很長時間了。但目前世界上充斥著中國鋼鐵，我們知道這仍然是高補貼的。

China, I mean, with this attempt to cut production in the last few months, this is not as fast as people would imagine. China continues to put noncompetitive and subsidized steel in the global market. So it's very hard to do that math. Therefore, everybody is concerned, even the more mature countries are putting some kind of protection in their industries to mitigate unfair competition in the market.

我的意思是，中國在過去幾個月試圖減產，但速度並不像人們想像的那麼快。中國繼續將非競爭性和補貼鋼鐵投放到全球市場。所以做這個數學是非常困難的。因此，大家都擔心，即使是比較成熟的國家也在對其產業進行某種保護，以減少市場上的不公平競爭。

And to reinforce my speech I mean, the numbers that you see in some statistics, like even the ABR report does not reflect another concerning aspect, which is the import of continuous steel. When we look at, we look at the first months of the year, there was a significant drop in our deliveries, in our shipments to the industry. Because in Brazil, we saw the entry of machines and equipment with steel that wasn't ours. It's difficult to quantify that, but this influenced our demand from the industry. The demand coming from civil construction didn't drop as much, but the industry, that was impacted.

為了強化我的演講，我的意思是，你在一些統計數據中看到的數字，甚至是 ABR 報告，都沒有反映出另一個令人擔憂的方面，即連續鋼材的進口。當我們觀察今年的前幾個月時，我們向該行業的發貨量大幅下降。因為在巴西，我們看到了不屬於我們的鋼鐵機器和設備的進入。很難量化這一點，但這影響了我們對行業的需求。來自土木建築的需求下降幅度不大，但該行業受到了影響。

So this is irrational, but I think this may be corrected throughout the next months. We are closely monitoring the movements from China. I mean these cuts in production take a long time, but they are happening. At the same time, this attempt to reinvigorate the Chinese economy to reach percentages that are close to what was expected in terms of GDP growth of 7% are taking place. So this remains a concern.

所以這是不合理的，但我認為這可能會在接下來的幾個月內得到糾正。我們正在密切關注來自中國的動向。我的意思是，這些減產需要很長時間，但它們正在發生。與此同時，中國正在努力重振經濟，使其 GDP 增長接近預期的 7%。所以這仍然是一個問題。

Now speaking about Brazil, now for the third quarter, we see that the demand is quite stable. There was a decline, and maybe more for longs than flat. But I think in terms of demand, we find ourselves at a comfortable level. So what we see today will remain in the next quarters, but in the midrange, we see that some sectors will resume growth. Even civil construction, there have been many launches and these launches will demand more steel. There have been auctions for transmission lines, and they are very relevant when it comes to the demand for profiles in bars.

現在談到巴西，第三季度，我們看到需求相當穩定。下跌幅度可能更大，多頭多頭持平。但我認為就需求而言，我們發現自己處於一個舒適的水平。因此，我們今天看到的情況將在接下來的幾個季度繼續存在，但在中期，我們看到一些行業將恢復增長。即使是民用建築，也有許多新項目的推出，而這些新項目的推出將需要更多的鋼材。已經有傳輸線拍賣，它們與酒吧型材的需求非常相關。

Well, it may be slow, but it will happen. But looking more specifically to the third quarter, Daniel, I believe that the domestic market level will be very similar to what we saw now in the second quarter. Now Japur, it's with you.

好吧，這可能會很慢，但它會發生。但更具體地看第三季度，丹尼爾，我相信國內市場水平將與我們現在在第二季度看到的非常相似。現在，賈普爾，就在你身邊。

I would just like to say, I mean, in relation to what I've heard from your questions about mining. This year, in 2023, we already spent BRL 500 million related to the new sustainable program in the mine in Minas. This is a portfolio with important assets of investments that include not only the mine per se, but everything around it, like logistics, utilities, transmission lines. This has been in progress, and so as part of that disbursement a big chunk of it, a big chunk of the investment relates to that program. As you well noted, in terms of that chart I showed you.

我只想說，我的意思是，關於我從你們關於採礦的問題中聽到的內容。今年，即 2023 年，我們已經花費了 5 億雷亞爾用於米納斯礦山的新可持續項目。這是一個包含重要投資資產的投資組合，不僅包括礦山本身，還包括其周圍的一切，如物流、公用事業、輸電線路。這項工作一直在進行中，因此作為支出的一部分，很大一部分投資與該計劃有關。正如您所指出的，就我向您展示的圖表而言。

I mean, deliberately, we didn't put the amount. We just put some order of magnitude, precisely because of what Gustavo said. We do not have any guidance for next year's CapEx, even though we, again, ratified that we do not anticipate any substantial increase in CapEx for the next coming years. But in fact, a very substantial amount of that 5 billion, or maybe 45% of that amount, is concentrated in 2024.

我的意思是，我們故意沒有輸入金額。我們只是提出了一些數量級，正是因為古斯塔沃所說的。儘管我們再次確認，我們預計未來幾年的資本支出不會大幅增加，但我們對明年的資本支出沒有任何指導。但事實上，這 50 億美元中的很大一部分，或者說其中的 45%，都集中在 2024 年。

So there is no doubt that this -- that there will be a more significant spending in 2024, earmarked for that investment in that sustainable program this year. If you recall that CapEx material fact this year, almost 2/3 of our CapEx disbursement is earmarked for Minas Gerais. We already said in the past, we talked about these investments we are making now. It is also important to highlight, also in line with what Gustavo said and also linking that to my initial presentation about our balance sheet, in this quarter, we reached the lowest level of gross debt of the last 15 years. And this is due to all of the hard work that we did and our partners did as well. And this is also preparing the company to move on with all of the projects that we have in the pipeline with a lot of resolve, and without having to make changes in the investments that we already started to execute. One of the reasons that it will, when you look at our debt amortization schedule, you see that the most significant maturity only occurs in 2027 with our bond. And this gives us a clear path to make all the necessary investments to modernize, and to continue to generate value to our business.

因此，毫無疑問，2024 年將會有更多的支出，專門用於今年可持續計劃的投資。如果您還記得今年的資本支出重要事實，我們幾乎 2/3 的資本支出支出專門用於米納斯吉拉斯州。我們過去已經說過，我們談論了我們現在正在進行的這些投資。同樣重要的是要強調，正如古斯塔沃所說，並將其與我最初關於我們資產負債表的介紹聯繫起來，在本季度，我們的總債務達到了過去 15 年的最低水平。這歸功於我們以及我們的合作夥伴所做的所有努力。這也讓公司做好準備，以堅定的決心繼續推進我們正在醞釀的所有項目，而不必改變我們已經開始執行的投資。原因之一是，當您查看我們的債務攤銷時間表時，您會發現我們的債券最重要的到期日僅發生在 2027 年。這為我們提供了一條清晰的道路，可以進行所有必要的投資以實現現代化，並繼續為我們的業務創造價值。

Perfect. Wernecki, if you allow me, just a very quick follow-up. Do you see any movement maybe coming from the industry sector in terms of increasing import tariffs for steel or maybe, I mean, you talked about the fact that the Chinese steel is flooding the world in this -- do you think that this could be also another concern? This wasn't the case in 2015 or '16 when we saw some similar move. Do you think that this is possible?

完美的。 Wernecki，如果您允許的話，請快速跟進一下。您是否看到工業部門在提高鋼鐵進口關稅方面採取了任何行動，或者，我的意思是，您可能談到了中國鋼鐵正在湧入世界的事實 - 您是否認為這也可能是另一個問題？ 2015 年或 16 年的情況並非如此，當時我們看到了一些類似的舉動。您認為這可能嗎？

I think it's possible, yes. And these are talks that happen every day. I mean, when you talked about 17.4% level, I think that was the level of import penetration, 17.4% I think. I haven't seen that for a very long time. Also, I talked about continuous steel. As we've always said, this is a narrative that has been prevailing in Brazil, that the steel industry is not competitive, that we want protection. No, we just want to compete on equal footing. We've been very vocal about that, and we give clear examples to the authorities that there is an unfair competition.

我認為這是可能的，是的。這些都是每天都會發生的談話。我的意思是，當你談到 17.4% 的水平時，我認為這就是進口滲透率的水平，我認為是 17.4%。我已經很長時間沒有看到這個了。另外，我還談到了連續鋼。正如我們一直所說，這是巴西盛行的一種說法，即鋼鐵行業沒有競爭力，我們需要保護。不，我們只是想平等競爭。我們對此一直非常直言不諱，並向當局提供了明確的例子，表明存在不公平競爭。

So that's why I think that every Brazilian industrial sector should seek for that. Just as it is done in the U.S. You are very familiar with Resolution 232 and adjustment mechanisms in [Carefin] in Europe, these are mechanisms that have to be utilized by company, by countries, whenever we see some predatory moves like in this case, in the case of steel.

這就是為什麼我認為每個巴西工業部門都應該尋求這一點。就像美國所做的那樣，你非常熟悉232號決議和歐洲[Carefin]的調整機制，這些都是公司、國家必須利用的機制，每當我們看到像本案這樣的掠奪性舉動時，就鋼而言。

Our next question is from Rafael Barcellos, sell-side analyst from Santander. So please enable his camera.

我們的下一個問題來自桑坦德銀行的賣方分析師拉斐爾·巴塞洛斯（Rafael Barcellos）。所以請啟用他的相機。

Good morning, everyone. Can you hear me?

大家，早安。你能聽到我嗎？

Yes.

是的。

Wernecki, Japur and Renata. And the last time you talked to investors, one of the main discussion points was related to cost, mainly due to the fact that we look at some figures that are referenced for price, so that are coming down. So the cost debate is very important because it helps us understand about margins and stability in the Brazil market. Could you comment about your cost expectation for the third quarter. Looking at the movement of the main raw materials, do you think it will make sense to see some more stability. I would just like to hear more about the topic of cost.

韋爾內基、賈普爾和雷納塔。上次您與投資者交談時，主要討論點之一與成本有關，主要是因為我們查看了一些參考價格的數據，因此價格正在下降。因此，成本辯論非常重要，因為它有助於我們了解巴西市場的利潤率和穩定性。您能否評論一下您對第三季度的成本預期？看看主要原材料的走勢，您認為看到更多的穩定性是否有意義。我只是想听聽更多有關成本的話題。

And my second question is about special steel. We consider it to be one of the highlights of the quarter. We saw a very significant recovery in terms of shipments in Brazil. But we also see some more modest numbers when we look at the ANFAVEA numbers. Do you have any specific issue that really led to that situation? And so how do you see that division as a whole evolving in the second and third quarters?

我的第二個問題是關於特殊鋼的。我們認為這是本季度的亮點之一。我們看到巴西的發貨量出現了非常顯著的複蘇。但當我們查看 ANFAVEA 數據時，我們也看到了一些更為溫和的數字。您是否有任何具體問題真正導致了這種情況？那麼您如何看待該部門在第二季度和第三季度的整體發展？

Okay. Hello Rafael. We had a technical problem, I'm sorry. Well, basically, I think there is a very important element because the cost index, and also, you referred to price of raw materials in products. There is an important element in our Brazil operation in addition to managing the fixed cost. And I'm referring to coal, we consume coal in our Ouro Branco mill. Coal typically has a long lead time. And this probably explains a little bit of our working capital issues. It's about 150 to 180 days. So what we see today when we look at the price index, this will only reflect, in terms of COGS, 150 to 180 days ahead. So the drop in prices of coal, mainly throughout the first half of the year should probably have a greater effect in terms of the coal cost, which is our raw material that is more representative. Of the Brazil cost, this will be more important, more relevant in the third and fourth quarter, just to show you a few elements that in our view are important in terms of cost.

好的。你好拉斐爾。我們遇到了技術問題，抱歉。嗯，基本上，我認為有一個非常重要的因素，因為成本指數，而且，你提到了產品中原材料的價格。除了管理固定成本之外，我們的巴西業務還有一個重要因素。我指的是煤炭，我們在 Ouro Branco 工廠消耗煤炭。煤炭通常有很長的交貨時間。這或許可以解釋我們營運資金的一些問題。大約150到180天。因此，當我們今天查看價格指數時，我們所看到的內容僅以銷貨成本計算，反映了未來 150 至 180 天的情況。所以煤炭價格的下降，主要是上半年的下降，可能對煤炭成本的影響更大，煤炭是我們更具代表性的原材料。就巴西成本而言，這在第三和第四季度將更加重要、更加相關，只是為了向您展示我們認為在成本方面很重要的一些要素。

In addition, we are seeing some moves in the scrap market in Brazil in terms of price adjustments. And this should also reflect in cost reduction. In addition to that, we have our journey in our business operation in terms of everything that we try to do to maximize our efficiency. And we diligently seek for expense reductions in general.

此外，我們還看到巴西廢鋼市場在價格調整方面出現了一些動作。這也應該體現在成本的降低上。除此之外，我們在業務運營中盡一切努力以最大限度地提高效率。我們努力尋求總體上的開支削減。

Rafael, about special steels, we are going through different moments in our special steel operations in our North America operation and the Brazil operation as well. In North America, our operation remains very sound. The volumes [of our] shipments are very good, both in the automotive sector, both for heavy duty and light vehicles and oil and gas segments and others. Volumes are very sound, and we are also benefiting from -- some benefits from improvements in our Monroe mill in Michigan, which is one of the most modern mills in the world.

拉斐爾，關於特殊鋼，我們的北美業務和巴西業務的特殊鋼業務正在經歷不同的時刻。在北美，我們的運營仍然非常穩健。無論是在汽車領域、重型和輕型車輛、石油和天然氣領域還是其他領域，我們的出貨量都非常好。產量非常可觀，而且我們還受益於密歇根州門羅工廠的改進，該工廠是世界上最現代化的工廠之一。

So we are now reaping the benefits due to the fact that for years, we made movements to improve that mill. So we are not -- we are investing a little bit also in the rolling mill. So the mill is now equipped to cater to all of the new industrial needs. So our operation in North America is quite sound.

因此，我們現在正在受益，因為多年來我們一直在改進工廠。所以我們不是——我們也在軋機上投資了一點。因此，該工廠現在已具備滿足所有新工業需求的能力。所以我們在北美的經營還是比較健全的。

On the other hand, we are facing difficulties in Brazil. We are looking at constant layoffs and plant shutdowns in the automobile industry, and the slight recovery of volumes that we saw through that government incentive in terms of the acquisition of popular cars. That was not relevant. So in addition to the credit crunch and high interest rates, I mean there was some anticipation in the purchase of heavy vehicles in the beginning of this year, there was a change in the diesel engine, because there was a replacement to Euro 5. So we have an advantage with our special steel operations when we compare to flat and long steel operations, because we can make very quick changes in our cost level.

另一方面，我們在巴西也面臨著困難。我們正在關注汽車行業的持續裁員和工廠關閉，以及通過政府激勵措施購買受歡迎的汽車而看到的銷量略有回升。那是不相關的。所以除了信貸緊縮和高利率之外，我的意思是今年年初購買重型車輛時有一些預期，柴油發動機也發生了變化，因為有歐元5的替代品。所以與扁鋼和長材業務相比，我們的特種鋼業務具有優勢，因為我們可以快速改變成本水平。

So we do not face [the issue of] coal as Japur mentioned, and it's not as complex. So I think we were very quick and very efficient in adjusting the capacity of our special steel plants in Charqueadas, [Mocha das Cruzes], and we are now adjusted to a good level of production. So I don't think this demand will recover in the short run.

因此，我們不會像賈普爾提到的那樣面臨煤炭[問題]，而且也沒有那麼複雜。因此，我認為我們非常快速、非常高效地調整了查克達斯 [Mocha das Cruzes] 的特殊鋼廠的產能，現在我們已調整到良好的生產水平。所以我認為這種需求短期內不會恢復。

So in Brazil, we will see lower volumes but we believe and we trust that our operation is very lean and very adequate to navigate in these dire periods while we wait for a recovery of demand. I mean if we look at special skills, putting North America and Brazil together, I see the situation very stable, repeating, going forward, what we were able to do this quarter, but there is also seasonality at the end of the year, and we have to monitor that. So the fourth quarter may bring some variables that at the moment, we cannot describe to you. But in general, I see stability. North America, very well, and Brazil is still facing some difficulties.

因此，在巴西，我們將看到銷量下降，但我們相信並且相信我們的運營非常精簡，足以在我們等待需求復甦的同時度過這些嚴峻的時期。我的意思是，如果我們看看特殊技能，將北美和巴西放在一起，我認為情況非常穩定，重複，前進，我們本季度能夠做的事情，但年底也有季節性，並且我們必須對此進行監測。所以第四季度可能會帶來一些變量，目前我們無法向你描述。但總的來說，我看到了穩定性。北美地區情況很好，而巴西仍面臨一些困難。

Japur, I just have a quick follow-up. Maybe it was my connection that was bad. So you understand that this cost should start coming down now in the third quarter? Or do you think that this will only happen at the end of the year?

Japur，我只是快速跟進一下。也許是我的連接不好。所以您知道這項成本應該從第三季度開始下降嗎？或者你認為這只會在年底發生？

Can I say something in between, between the third and fourth quarter? Well, okay, regarding already in the third quarter in terms of coal and other initiatives. But in fact, I think that (technical difficulty) reduction in the average cost, which is a bit tricky because we are working with FIFO. maybe we could have a little bit more clarity in terms of the [average] cost. But as we work with the average cost of Brazil, now things are a bit shaky, but we expect some results [bearing] from that in the third quarter, but it will be more relevant in the fourth quarter.

我可以在第三季度和第四季度之間說些什麼嗎？好吧，就第三季度的煤炭和其他舉措而言。但事實上，我認為（技術難度）平均成本的降低，這有點棘手，因為我們正在使用先進先出。也許我們可以更清楚地了解[平均]成本。但當我們研究巴西的平均成本時，現在情況有點不穩定，但我們預計第三季度會產生一些結果，但第四季度會更加相關。

Next question from Thiago Lofiego, sell-side analyst from Bradesco BBI. So Thiago, please open the camera.

Bradesco BBI 的賣方分析師蒂亞戈·洛菲戈 (Thiago Lofiego) 提出了下一個問題。蒂亞戈，請打開相機。

I have 2 questions. Going back to the dividend issue and capital allocation. In fact, I have a few questions on the topic. First, the 35% payout, which is a slight -- slightly higher. Is this a one-off situation? Was there any rationale behind it? Should we expect any changes in that level? I just want to understand what the rationale was? And Japur, you also talked about the credit line, that revolver facility. And then, I mean, just to clarify, you do not consider that level of liquidity whenever you think about dividend payouts. I just want to clarify that concept because your cash is below that BRL 5 billion or BRL 6 billion that you mentioned. And in your view, that is the optimal position.

我有 2 個問題。回到股息發行和資本配置。事實上，我對這個話題有幾個問題。首先，35% 的支付率略高一些。這是一次性的情況嗎？這背後有什麼道理嗎？我們應該期待這個水平發生任何變化嗎？我只是想了解一下其原理是什麼？ Japur，您還談到了信貸額度、左輪手槍設施。然後，我的意思是，澄清一下，每當您考慮股息支付時，您​​都不會考慮這種流動性水平。我只是想澄清這個概念，因為您的現金低於您提到的 50 億雷亞爾或 60 億雷亞爾。在你看來，這就是最佳位置。

But after all, all I want to understand, what is the possibility in the third quarter of you not paying extraordinary dividends because the cash position is slightly below the ideal level. I know that leverage is pretty much in line and it's comfortable. That's not the issue. I know working capital helps, but the CapEx, maybe it's more intense in the next quarter. So I just want to understand if there is any possibility of you becoming more conservative and probably maybe not paying that extraordinary dividend that you usually pay in the third quarter.

但畢竟，我想了解的是，由於現金狀況略低於理想水平，您在第三季度不支付特別股息的可能性有多大。我知道槓桿幾乎是一致的並且很舒服。那不是問題。我知道營運資金有所幫助，但資本支出可能會在下個季度更加緊張。因此，我只是想了解您是否有可能變得更加保守，並且可能不會支付通常在第三季度支付的非凡股息。

And also, if you can clarify the issue that 35%, that will be good. And the other question, going back to the Brazil operation, I just want some further clarification because I understand and you said that we should see the beginning of a drop in costs in the third quarter. The price of rebars in Brazil should fall, a 14% margin. Werneck, do you think that this is a margin that is in line with the current moment? Okay. Now it's August. Is this the market dynamics today? Or you think that we should see some additional margin pressure even though costs are beginning to fall?

另外，如果你能澄清35%的問題，那就太好了。另一個問題，回到巴西業務，我只想進一步澄清，因為我理解，你說我們應該在第三季度看到成本開始下降。巴西螺紋鋼價格應下跌 14%。 Werneck，您認為這個利潤符合當前情況嗎？好的。現在已經是八月了。這是今天的市場動態嗎？或者您認為即使成本開始下降，我們也應該看到一些額外的利潤壓力？

Okay. Japur, you answer the first part, you talk about Brazil, rebars, et cetera.

好的。 Japur，您回答了第一部分，您談到了巴西、螺紋鋼等等。

Thiago. Let me start with the easier question. In the first quarter, we paid based on interest on equity. So we -- when we think about the net dividend received by shareholders, that was below 30%. So this quarter, taking into account the cash position, the profitability levels that we have and the predictability of disbursements for the next quarters, we chose to maintain the profile so that the shareholders will perceive the same economic benefit, I mean, in terms of price per share, and then we escalate it to 35%. But when we look at the end of the year, we are maybe slightly above that 30% that our bylaws mandates. But it's a bit of what we saved, I mean, with expenses in the first quarters and that also reflected on a lower tax rate. And so that was basically it. That was the rationale behind that slightly higher payout of 30% or like the full payout of 30%.

蒂亞戈.讓我從更簡單的問題開始。第一季度，我們根據股本利息支付。因此，當我們考慮股東收到的淨股息時，該數字低於 30%。因此，本季度，考慮到我們的現金狀況、盈利水平以及下個季度支出的可預測性，我們選擇維持這一形象，以便股東能夠感受到相同的經濟利益，我的意思是，在每股價格，然後我們將其提升至35%。但當我們看到年底時，我們可能略高於章程規定的 30%。但這是我們節省的一部分，我的意思是，第一季度的開支，這也反映在較低的稅率上。基本上就是這樣。這就是 30% 略高的支付或 30% 的全額支付背後的理由。

Now in terms of the extraordinary dividend payout, and I think you mentioned several aspects. And I think I mentioned that, when I answered Kyle's question, in addition to our own uncertainties and considerations about our own business, considering -- I mean, in terms of CapEx, pay, CapEx investments and working capital, I mean working capital is becoming a buzzword in the company. I mean we seek for further reductions. But it will certainly depend on other external aspects like the tax reform or maybe some possible changes in our tax performance, I mean the tax rate. I mean, certainly, maybe we could revisit our capital structure. When I talk about the revolver facility, it is not structurally thought to do the balance sheet. It is a facility of immediate liquidity, it is there to support us and to act as a bridge for some transaction. But this is not something that we think about using, let's say, to do some refunding of the company.

現在就特別股息支付而言，我想你提到了幾個方面。我想我提到，當我回答凱爾的問題時，除了我們自己的不確定性和對我們自己業務的考慮之外，考慮到——我的意思是，就資本支出、薪酬、資本支出投資和營運資本而言，我的意思是營運資本是成為公司裡的流行語。我的意思是我們尋求進一步削減。但這肯定取決於其他外部方面，例如稅收改革或我們的稅收表現可能發生的一些變化，我指的是稅率。我的意思是，當然，也許我們可以重新審視我們的資本結構。當我談論左輪手槍設施時，從結構上來說，它並不是用來做資產負債表的。它是一種即時流動性設施，它可以支持我們並充當某些交易的橋樑。但這不是我們考慮用來為公司退款的東西。

But once again, our leverage position is very good. Our disbursements of debt maturity in the next years will allow us to move on with our investment program in a very comfortable way with no hiccups. And we are just evaluating giving good returns to our shareholders based on what I said.

但我們的槓桿狀況再次非常好。我們未來幾年到期債務的支付將使我們能夠以非常舒適的方式繼續我們的投資計劃，不會出現任何問題。我們只是根據我所說的來評估給股東帶來好的回報。

Good. So now, Thiago, I will answer the question about Brazil. I understand that the drop in rebars, even, I mean, to draw a model about measuring prices in some construction stores, of rebars, I think for the model, it is correct. But I'm a bit careful because in our specific case, in the case of Gerdau, this does not represent the whole. So we have a big strength at Commercial Gerdau. And it doesn't necessarily use the prices at the distribution end. We have contracts and agreements with construction companies. So this drop in rebar prices does not necessarily represent the current reality. Of course, it is a concern, and how do we create mechanisms to prevent this drop. We've been working on that. Our number today does not reflect the numbers on the screen. So we are working on that.

好的。現在，蒂亞戈，我將回答有關巴西的問題。我理解螺紋鋼的下降，甚至，我的意思是，繪製一個關於測量一些建築商店螺紋鋼價格的模型，我認為對於該模型來說，它是正確的。但我有點小心，因為在我們的具體案例中，就蓋爾道而言，這並不代表整體。因此，蓋爾道商業中心擁有強大的實力。而且不一定使用分銷端的價格。我們與建築公司有合同和協議。因此螺紋鋼價格的下跌並不一定代表當前的現實。當然，這是一個問題，我們如何建立機制來防止這種下降。我們一直在努力。我們今天的數字並不反映屏幕上的數字。所以我們正在努力解決這個問題。

Another very sensitive topic, and we are always very careful when we talk about that, refers to the margins -- the export margins of the domestic market. Our major concern right now, we are mitigating the risks. I mean -- and we don't see the possibility of continuing practicing margins in the domestic market as we have today. So how can we not deteriorate these margins with bad exports. So we are removing export capacity very quickly now in the fourth quarter. The numbers that you saw in the results for the second quarter will be lower, I would say closer to the shipping volumes of the third quarter downwards. So when we talk about 14%, the topic today is how can we prevent further deterioration of the export margins. Our capacity, we have a capacity of 20% to 22% in terms of exports. Sometimes this is helpful. Sometimes it's not. This time, it's not helping us because it pulls the domestic margin down.

另一個非常敏感的話題，我們在談論這個話題時總是非常小心，指的是利潤率——國內市場的出口利潤率。我們現在最關心的是降低風險。我的意思是——我們看不到像今天這樣在國內市場繼續實行利潤率的可能性。那麼，我們怎樣才能不因出口不佳而惡化這些利潤呢？因此，我們在第四季度很快就消除了出口產能。您在第二季度的業績中看到的數字將會更低，我想說的是，更接近於第三季度的運輸量下降。所以當我們談論14%時，今天的話題是如何防止出口利潤率進一步惡化。我們的產能，就出口而言，我們有20%到22%的產能。有時這很有幫助。有時並非如此。這一次，它對我們沒有幫助，因為它拉低了國內利潤率。

Therefore, we are betting that this volatility in the market will not be of a long run. But we believe that there will not be a reversal in the short run in our national prices, considering the situation coming from China. So we are we are removing our productive -- I mean taking some of this production capacity out not to be hurt in terms of exports. So this is what we are doing at the moment.

因此，我們押注市場的這種波動不會持續很長時間。但考慮到中國的情況，我們認為短期內我國物價不會出現逆轉。因此，我們正在取消我們的生產能力——我的意思是取消部分生產能力，以免出口受到損害。這就是我們目前正在做的事情。

Our next question from Gabriel Simoes, a sell-side analyst from Goldman Sachs. He asked 2 questions through the platform, and I will read them. The first, despite the drop in profitability coming from the North America business, the business operation still posts strong margins. I would just like to understand how do you see the market dynamics in the region, whether the metal spreads remain at similar levels going forward? And whether you can see a deeper effect of the Inflation Reduction Act. And if you have more examples of near-shoring, et cetera?

我們的下一個問題來自高盛 (Goldman Sachs) 賣方分析師加布里埃爾·西蒙斯 (Gabriel Simoes)。他通過平台問了2個問題，我會看一下。首先，儘管北美業務的盈利能力下降，但該業務的利潤率仍然很高。我只是想了解您如何看待該地區的市場動態，未來金屬價差是否仍保持在類似水平？以及是否可以看到《通貨膨脹削減法案》的更深層次影響。如果您有更多近岸外包的例子，等等？

The second question is, we saw the need -- I mean we saw working capital requirement increasing this half year, while we expected a decline. So what is leading that, especially when you look in terms of days and whether, in fact, we should see an increased reduction of this line in the next quarters or whether there are more structural factors that should keep that line still high for longer?

第二個問題是，我們看到了需求——我的意思是我們看到營運資金需求在這半年增加，而我們預計會下降。那麼是什麼導致了這一趨勢，特別是當你從天數來看時，事實上，我們是否應該看到該線在接下來的幾個季度中進一步減少，或者是否有更多的結構性因素應該使該線在更長時間內保持在高位？

Well, you can talk about North America. And then I will add with -- I will talk about North America, and I'll be very brief. Somehow, we already talked about that before. But as I said, it's very resilient. Our backlog and the medium-range outlook is very, very good. So in terms of metal spread, a relevant aspect of metal spread is scrap. We are working with a scrap level that has low volatility at the moment. I said that we already ended our August purchases at a flat level in terms of scrap purchases. We look at our backlog and we see near-shoring appearing, I think. A good example has to do with automotive components and more specifically semiconductors, we see now a transfer of plants from Asia into the U.S. We are delivering still. This is part of our business. So we see things running very smoothly and stable.

好吧，你可以談談北美。然後我會補充一點——我將談論北美，而且我會非常簡短。不知何故，我們之前已經討論過這一點。但正如我所說，它非常有彈性。我們的積壓訂單和中期前景非常非常好。因此，就金屬價差而言，金屬價差的一個相關方面是廢鋼。目前我們正在處理波動性較低的廢鋼水平。我說過，就廢鋼採購而言，我們已經以持平水平結束了 8 月份的採購。我認為，我們查看了我們的積壓訂單，發現出現了近岸外包。一個很好的例子與汽車零部件，更具體地說是半導體有關，我們現在看到工廠從亞洲轉移到美國。我們仍在交付。這是我們業務的一部分。所以我們看到事情運行得非常順利和穩定。

Now we are trying to have more visibility in terms of what the fourth quarter holds. And so I'll leave that for Japur, because in terms of working capital, how do we see the dynamic of the markets where we operate starting in the fourth quarter of this year? So Japur, now it's up to you.

現在我們正試圖對第四季度的情況有更多的了解。因此，我將把這個問題留給賈普爾，因為就營運資本而言，我們如何看待我們從今年第四季度開始運營的市場的動態？所以，Japur，現在就看你的了。

Gabriel, I don't have a very simple answer, but I will try to summarize the topic of working capital at the speed of things. When we break down our working capital structurally or basically, we have about 30 days of accounts receivables, 30 days of accounts payable. And basically, the difference is the inventory, that it's very close, even when we look at our historical chart. I mean, apart from some one-off moments, working capital is very close to our inventory. So accounts receivable and inventories, 1 cancels the other. What happens when we have a reduction in the level of activities with a reduction in sales volumes? When we look at the second quarter of last year, and compare it to the first quarter this year, our net sales is about 30 -- I mean, it's 5% lower, 3% refers to prices and then physical things. I mean, as our cash conversion cycle is calculated in days of net revenue. So I take into account the past revenue once that sales come down.

加布里埃爾，我沒有一個非常簡單的答案，但我會嘗試以事物發展的速度總結營運資本的主題。當我們從結構上或基本上分解我們的營運資金時，我們大約有 30 天的應收賬款，30 天的應付賬款。基本上，區別在於庫存，即使我們查看歷史圖表，它也非常接近。我的意思是，除了一些一次性的情況外，營運資金與我們的庫存非常接近。所以應收賬款和存貨，1個取消另一個。當我們的活動水平減少且銷量減少時會發生什麼？當我們看去年第二季度，並將其與今年第一季度進行比較時，我們的淨銷售額約為30——我的意思是，下降了5%，其中3% 指的是價格，然後是實物。我的意思是，因為我們的現金轉換週期是按淨收入天數計算的。因此，一旦銷售額下降，我就會考慮過去的收入。

And as there is a difference between the suppliers' account, which is quicker versus the inventory account. One is 30 days and the other, 80 days. What happens is that when you anticipate that you are selling a bit less or when you think that you will sell less, like in the case of this quarter, you reduce that trade accounts payable, but the inventory accounts will only react not in that same 30 days, but in 40 or 50 days later. That's why many times, there is this mismatch between you start having these incentives in that working capital and you start preparing the operation, as Gustavo said in the previous question when you refer to volumes that we were removing some export capacity. And this has also translated into reduction the adjustment of working capital. But there is a certain delay between the reduction in the trade accounts payable because this generates less cost, and that means less working capital and less -- I mean so this difference in days is explained by this topic.

由於供應商帳戶之間存在差異，因此比庫存帳戶更快。一個是30天，另一個是80天。發生的情況是，當您預計自己的銷售量會減少一點，或者當您認為自己會減少銷售量時（就像本季度的情況一樣），您會減少應付賬款，但庫存賬戶只會做出反應，而不是在相同的情況下做出反應。 30天，但40或50天后。這就是為什麼很多時候，你開始在營運資金中獲得這些激勵措施和你開始準備運營之間存在這種不匹配，正如古斯塔沃在上一個問題中提到我們正在取消一些出口能力的數量時所說的那樣。而這也轉化為營運資金調整的減少。但是，貿易應付賬款的減少之間存在一定的延遲，因為這會產生更少的成本，這意味著更少的營運資金和更少——我的意思是，這個主題解釋了這種天數差異。

But once again, that's why it's important to say that we really monitor our inventory volume. And as in the 3 past quarters, we've seen a reduction in inventory levels, we then believe that this already signals that all of our action plans focus on reducing and adjusting our working capital and our cash conversion cycle should bear good fruits in the second half of the year.

但再次強調，這就是為什麼我們必須真正監控我們的庫存量。與過去三個季度一樣，我們看到庫存水平有所下降，我們相信這已經表明我們所有的行動計劃都專注於減少和調整我們的營運資本，我們的現金轉換週期應該會在下半年。

Moving on to questions that came in writing. We have a question from Caio Ribeiro. He says, first of all, I have a question about what you've been saying in past calls about the level of the optimal gross debt and that level of BRL 5 billion or BRL 6 billion. Could you say whether this implies that you understand that a net debt of BRL 6 billion would be the most important metric to follow, or whether the minimum cash of BRL 6 million is more important or maybe as important as that. If you have a minimum cash of BRL 6 million, what do you believe to be more important, given the fact that today you are below that level? Would you try to issue more debt in the coming months to recover your cash position, so you would have more room to pay extraordinary dividends? That's question number one.

繼續討論書面提出的問題。我們有來自 Caio Ribeiro 的問題。他說，首先，我對你在過去的電話中所說的最佳總債務水平以及 50 億雷亞爾或 60 億雷亞爾的水平有一個疑問。您能否說明這是否意味著您了解 60 億雷亞爾的淨債務將是需要遵循的最重要指標，或者 600 萬雷亞爾的最低現金是否更重要或可能同樣重要。如果您的現金至少為 600 萬雷亞爾，考慮到目前您的現金水平低於該水平，您認為什麼更重要？您是否會嘗試在未來幾個月內發行更多債務來恢復現金狀況，以便有更多空間來支付特別股息？這是第一個問題。

Now question number 2. My second question is about your North America [bill]. Given the fact that you posted lower volumes this half year due to maintenance. And the prices of bar and profiles in the U.S. are stable in the third quarter versus the second quarter, whereas scrap prices are down. Do you see room to see a margin expansion especially if you see volumes, maintenance shutdowns and improvements in cost. So I turn the floor to you.

現在是問題 2。我的第二個問題是關於你們的北美[賬單]。鑑於您這半年由於維護而發布的銷量較低。第三季度美國棒材和型材價格與第二季度相比保持穩定，而廢鋼價格則有所下降。您是否認為利潤率有擴大的空間，特別是如果您看到產量、維護停工和成本改善的話。那麼我請你發言。

Caio, I can start answering the first question about our capital structure. In the slide, when we talk about debt and leverage in our financial policy, we were not referring to our net debt, but our net debt over EBITDA, which is below 1.5x. And this is our gross debt ceiling. That's the number we work with, so that we don't have a growth debt that is higher than BRL 12 billion. So this is not a target that we want to owe 12 million (sic) [billion]. We do not want to owe more than BRL 12 billion.

Caio，我可以開始回答關於我們資本結構的第一個問題。在幻燈片中，當我們談論財務政策中的債務和槓桿時，我們指的不是我們的淨債務，而是我們的淨債務與 EBITDA 之比，低於 1.5 倍。這是我們的總債務上限。這是我們合作的數字，因此我們的增長債務不會超過 120 億雷亞爾。所以這不是我們想要欠1200萬（原文如此）[十億]的目標。我們不想欠超過 120 億巴西雷亞爾。

About the weight that we give to cash or net debt in a time line varies a lot, taking into account what are the financial obligations we see in the consecutive quarters. I would say, I mean, in the previous quarter, this would be a weaker free cash flow level because we knew that we had some -- that we had the maturity of our bond and the debenture as well as we knew that we had an important obligation of income tax payment that we had this quarter.

考慮到我們在連續幾個季度看到的財務義務，我們在一段時間內給予現金或淨債務的權重變化很大。我想說，我的意思是，在上一季度，這將是一個較弱的自由現金流水平，因為我們知道我們有一些——我們的債券和債券已經到期，而且我們知道我們有本季度我們有重要的所得稅繳納義務。

So okay, when we have -- when we say, okay, we have important things maturing in the next few months, we are a bit more concerned in terms of our cash position. But we are structured with a pool of first-line banks with a revolver facility that is fully available and it's probably just as big as our cash today. We have that facility because if needed, if we need more liquidity, we have like D+2 and so we want these resources to be available if we need, or maybe we want to restructure a longer-term debt. Maybe it would make sense to take a short-term debt just to pay dividends or to refund the company or to do a long-term CapEx.

所以，好吧，當我們說，好吧，我們有重要的事情將在未來幾個月內成熟時，我們會更加擔心我們的現金狀況。但我們的結構是由一批一線銀行組成，這些銀行擁有完全可用的循環設施，而且可能與我們今天的現金一樣大。我們擁有這種便利是因為如果需要的話，如果我們需要更多的流動性，我們有 D+2 之類的，所以我們希望在需要時可以使用這些資源，或者也許我們想重組長期債務。也許僅僅為了支付股息或向公司退款或進行長期資本支出而承擔短期債務是有意義的。

We try to match uses and sources in terms of our capital structure. And now in terms of North America, I already said it before, we don't anticipate any expansion in the margins. The margin should fluctuate up or down. It depends on some moves in terms of cost, we have concluded our initiatives in terms of energy and logistic costs. So for the third quarter, if I look at North America, I see it very stable when compared to what we delivered in the second quarter.

我們嘗試在資本結構方面匹配用途和來源。現在就北美而言，我之前已經說過，我們預計利潤率不會擴大。保證金應上下波動。這取決於成本方面的一些舉措，我們已經總結了能源和物流成本方面的舉措。因此，對於第三季度，如果我看看北美，我發現與我們第二季度的交付相比，它非常穩定。

Moving to our next question. We received some questions from Carlos De Alba from Morgan Stanley. He has a few questions.

轉到我們的下一個問題。我們收到了摩根士丹利卡洛斯·德阿爾巴（Carlos De Alba）提出的一些問題。他有幾個問題。

The first question, could you share more details about your mining investment plan that the year CapEx amount recovery, the average cost of mining sales to third parties, et cetera. Now his second question is, how do you see the outlook for flat and long steel prices, given the high premium in relation to exports and very challenging demands. Third question, SG&A expenses, 6 months in 2023 of 3% versus 2.3%, 6 months in the year 2022. How do you see these numbers going forward? Fourth question, what is the export level that you expect for flat and long sales in Brazil in the coming quarters? Fifth question. What was the impact on EBITDA of maintenance shutdowns in North America in the second quarter of 2023. Costs and loss of revenue and margins in that shipment reduction. Sixth and last question. Do you expect steel shipments in the South America division to remain above production levels in the coming quarters. So I will now turn the floor to Werneck and Japur.

第一個問題，您能否分享有關您的礦業投資計劃的更多詳細信息，包括當年資本支出回收金額、向第三方出售礦業的平均成本等。現在他的第二個問題是，考慮到與出口相關的高溢價和極具挑戰性的需求，您如何看待扁材和長材價格的前景。第三個問題，SG&A 費用，2023 年 6 個月為 3%，而 2022 年 6 個月為 2.3%。您如何看待這些數字的未來？第四個問題，您預計未來幾個季度巴西的持平和長銷出口水平是多少？第五個問題。 2023 年第二季度北美地區維修停工對 EBITDA 有何影響？出貨量減少帶來的成本以及收入和利潤損失。第六個問題，也是最後一個問題。您預計未來幾個季度南美分部的鋼鐵出貨量將保持在高於生產水平的水平嗎？現在我請韋內克和賈普爾發言。

Thank you, Carlos, for your questions. So as he has 6 questions, let's follow Carlos's order, so this is easier for us to organize. So you can start talking about mining.

卡洛斯，謝謝你的提問。因為他有 6 個問題，所以我們就按照 Carlos 的順序來，這樣我們就更容易組織了。那麼你可以開始談論挖礦了。

Okay. Looking at the numbers you mentioned. I mean, roughly speaking, 10% of the disbursement is a covenant for 2023. The most important chunk is about 45% of the covenants in the year 2024. And the remaining will occur in the following years with the start-up of our main asset, which is the mining concentration and filtering that will occur at the end of 2025 as mentioned by Gustavo during his presentation. Today we just announced a material fact related to the certification of the reserves. That's part of the program of sustainable mining, and that was a report produced by SRK, giving us 40 years of life spanned in terms of the investment in that reserve.

好的。看看你提到的數字。我的意思是，粗略地說，10% 的支出是2023 年的契約。最重要的部分是2024 年約45% 的契約。剩下的將在接下來的幾年中隨著我們主要項目的啟動而發生。資產，即 Gustavo 在演講中提到的 2025 年底將發生的挖礦集中和過濾。今天我們剛剛宣布了與儲備金認證相關的重要事實。這是可持續採礦計劃的一部分，也是 SRK 製作的一份報告，根據對該儲量的投資計算，我們的使用壽命為 40 年。

With that in mind, as part of that certification process, in order to do the classification of resources for the probable and possible reserves. The cash cost, I mean, it's something that we mentioned in the presentation when we gave you the returns expected both for the use of that 5.5 million tons as well as the improvement in the quality of the ore in Ouro Branco. We expect to generate about USD 220 million a year during the ramp-up. And for that, we consider a cash cost of around $30 per ton. In the mill, when the material is already in the mill. That BRL 476 million of reserves, they have an average concentration of 35.7% with a strip rate of 63%. And basically, this is what justifies the fact that the material is about 35.7% in situ to a palafitte with a high concentration of 65%. I think these were the main points related to that mining question.

考慮到這一點，作為認證過程的一部分，以便對可能和可能儲量進行資源分類。我的意思是，現金成本是我們在演示中提到的，當時我們向您提供了 550 萬噸的使用以及 Ouro Branco 礦石質量改善的預期回報。我們預計在啟動期間每年將產生約 2.2 億美元的收入。為此，我們認為每噸的現金成本約為 30 美元。在磨機中，當材料已經在磨機中時。儲量為4.76億雷亞爾，平均集中度為35.7%，剝採率為63%。基本上，這證明了該材料的原位含量約為 35.7%，而帕拉菲特的濃度高達 65%。我認為這些是與採礦問題相關的要點。

Yes, I don't have anything else to say about mining unless somebody else has another question about that subject. But quickly moving to the second question, prices of flats and longs. I don't see any possibility in the short run to see any increases, but I don't see the possibility of keeping these prices at the current levels. Of course, that there is a lot of work to be done in that regard. And in the last few years, in fact, I mean, we look at exchange rate and things that really affect the levels of export premium.

是的，關於採礦，我沒有什麼可說的，除非其他人對這個主題有其他問題。但很快就進入第二個問題，扁鋼和多頭的價格。我認為短期內沒有任何上漲的可能性，但我也不認為有可能將這些價格保持在當前水平。當然，這方面還有很多工作要做。事實上，我的意思是，在過去幾年中，我們關注匯率以及真正影響出口溢價水平的因素。

At the same time, we have a service level that is excellent in Brazil in terms of delivery terms, shipments, the strength of Commercial Gerdau, our total mix of products. We have a series of alternatives that allow us to maintain prices at the current levels. This is a challenge, and this challenge, I think, is well-detailed in-house, and we have good plans in that regard.

與此同時，我們在巴西的服務水平在交貨條件、運輸、Commercial Gerdau 的實力以及我們的整體產品組合方面都非常出色。我們有一系列替代方案，使我們能夠將價格維持在當前水平。這是一個挑戰，而且這個挑戰我認為內部是很詳細的，我們在這方面有很好的計劃。

The third point was SG&A. This is a number that I've been referring to for quite some time, a company like ours, with our culture and with the level of austerity shouldn't have over 3% of SG&A over revenue. So now we are hitting the ceiling at the high level of that trench. And this is explained by 2 factors. On the 1 hand, Carlos, there is the issue of lower revenue and the lower sales, and that affects part of the calculation. And in the last 3 years, we put in this SG&A all expenses related to Gerdau Next. Gerdau Next is an operation that is not yet delivering revenues at the level expected, even Addiante, which is the company that we recently established for the rental of trucks and machineries, is not already producing the levels of revenues we expect. So there are some expenses that are included in that SG&A line. So these 2 factors allow SG&A to hit 3.

第三點是SG&A。這是我很長一段時間以來一直提到的一個數字，像我們這樣的公司，以我們的文化和緊縮程度，SG&A 不應該超過收入的 3%。所以現在我們正觸及該戰壕最高處的天花板。這可以通過兩個因素來解釋。一方面，卡洛斯，存在收入下降和銷售額下降的問題，這影響了部分計算。在過去 3 年中，我們將與 Gerdau Next 相關的所有費用都計入了 SG&A。 Gerdau Next 的業務尚未達到預期的收入水平，即使是我們最近成立的卡車和機械租賃公司 Addiante，也尚未達到我們預期的收入水平。因此，SG&A 行中包含了一些費用。因此，這 2 個因素使得 SG&A 達到 3。

But there is many initiatives. Also, we have a very intense and rigid control of our expenses and costs and all of that is part of our nature, is part of our culture, and more specifically, during my administration and Japur's. So today, we do not have any plan to increase SG&A above 3% of our revenue.

但有很多舉措。此外，我們對開支和成本有非常嚴格和嚴格的控制，所有這些都是我們本性的一部分，是我們文化的一部分，更具體地說，在我的政府和賈普爾的政府期間。因此，今天我們沒有任何計劃將 SG&A 增加到收入的 3% 以上。

The fourth point, I think somehow I already answered about exports. We are removing our installed capacity earmarked for exports, but what we could expect now in terms of export volume in the third quarter, are volumes returning to the levels of the first quarter or even below. So we are already removing 100,000 tons of exports so that we can reach lower levels when compared to what we delivered in the first quarter, which I believe was 190.

第四點，我想我已經回答了有關出口的問題。我們正在取消指定用於出口的裝機容量，但我們現在可以預期第三季度的出口量將恢復到第一季度的水平甚至更低。因此，我們已經取消了 10 萬噸出口，以便與第一季度的交付量（我認為是 190 噸）相比，我們可以達到更低的水平。

And the other question about maintenance shutdown. Maybe you can help me, Japur.

另一個關於維護停機的問題。也許你可以幫助我，賈普爾。

I just remembered another point related to mining and the use of that ore. That ore will be fully utilized by our units in Minas Gerais: Ouro Branco, [Berichocai] Sete Lagoas, et cetera, the 4 units in Minas Gerais. So at the moment, we're not intend to sell that ore to third parties. And also about SG&A, as Gustavo was saying. And here refer to Gerdau Next. At Gerdau Next, we have a more associative nature when compared to our business and most of our assets are fully consolidated, but they're now at Next. And Newave and Addiante, these are all investments that we do not consolidate, meaning that they are not part of our net sales. Even though general expenses to run the business, they are part of the SG&A. So in a certain way, this affects that debt numerator, but we still have to work in a few issues like the ones Gustavo mentioned.

我剛剛想起了與採礦和礦石的使用有關的另一點。這些礦石將由我們在米納斯吉拉斯州的單位充分利用：Ouro Branco、[Berichocai] Sete Lagoas 等，米納斯吉拉斯州的 4 個單位。因此目前我們不打算將該礦石出售給第三方。正如古斯塔沃所說，還有關於 SG&A 的問題。這裡參考 Gerdau Next。在 Gerdau Next，與我們的業務相比，我們具有更強的關聯性，我們的大部分資產都得到了完全整合，但它們現在在 Next。 Newave 和 Addiante，這些都是我們不合併的投資，這意味著它們不屬於我們淨銷售額的一部分。儘管運營業務的一般費用，它們也是 SG&A 的一部分。因此，在某種程度上，這會影響債務分子，但我們仍然需要解決一些問題，例如古斯塔沃提到的問題。

Now I forgot the other question. Oh, about shipments. In North America, there was a delay because there was a delay of over 30 days in their weekly maintenance shutdown. I think referring to South America and not about volumes in South America. I think the sixth question is [related to] (technical difficulty) shipments. This quarter, we expect to see the maintenance of these shipments. Yes, we do expect maintenance.

現在我忘記了另一個問題。哦，關於發貨。在北美，出現了延遲，因為每週的維護停工延遲了 30 多天。我認為指的是南美洲，而不是南美洲的銷量。我認為第六個問題是[有關]（技術難度）發貨。本季度，我們預計這些出貨量將得到維持。是的，我們確實希望進行維護。

In Peru, we had some climate issues, which were very challenging in terms of our level of activity. Well, certainly, also, there [ec some] election in Argentina and this should probably remove some uncertainties. But as far as we expect the shipments to be maintained, volume is maintained in South America. I think we answered all of the 6 questions.

在秘魯，我們遇到了一些氣候問題，這對我們的活動水平來說非常具有挑戰性。嗯，當然，阿根廷也舉行了選舉，這可能會消除一些不確定性。但就我們預計出貨量將維持不變而言，南美洲的銷量也將維持不變。我想我們回答了所有 6 個問題。

Now Vanessa Quiroga, sell-side analyst from Credit Suisse. She would like to speak live. Please, can you open her camera?

現在，瓦妮莎·基羅加 (Vanessa Quiroga) 是瑞士信貸 (Credit Suisse) 的賣方分析師。她想現場講話。拜託，你能打開她的相機嗎？

My question is just to clarify a point that -- it's a bit confusing to me. In North America, there was a drop (technical difficulty) [in shipments] in the second quarter versus the first because there was lower demand. So do you think that you expect to see the same volumes in the third quarter, because demand is already lower than what it was in the beginning of the year? Is this a correct view?

我的問題只是為了澄清一點——這讓我有點困惑。在北美，由於需求下降，第二季度[出貨量]較第一季度有所下降（技術難度）。那麼，您是否認為第三季度的銷量會相同，因為需求已經低於年初的水平？這是正確的觀點嗎？

Yes, Vanessa, you're correct. The demand we saw in the second quarter is the demand that we are also seeing in the third quarter. We haven't seen any additional drop in demand. That is something that could happen going forward, but that -- we -- it's not included in this demand, [all of the incentives]. So we see a slight demand in the [coming quarters]. So to answer your question, the answer is yes. This is the current demand level that we are seeing.

是的，凡妮莎，你是對的。我們在第二季度看到的需求也是我們在第三季度看到的需求。我們沒有看到需求進一步下降。這是未來可能發生的事情，但是——我們——它不包括在這個需求中，[所有的激勵措施]。因此，我們看到[未來幾個季度]的需求略有增加。所以回答你的問題，答案是肯定的。這是我們目前看到的需求水平。

Next question from Rodolfo De Angele, sell-side analyst from JPMorgan. Please open his camera.

下一個問題來自摩根大通賣方分析師 Rodolfo De Angele。請打開他的相機。

After so many questions, I promise I only have 1 question, and it will be very brief. (technical difficulty) It's on mining. I think we already talked about several numbers, et cetera. I just want to understand Miguel Burnier is an area where you were for quite some time. What motivated you? I just want to have a picture of the before and after. That's all

在提出這麼多問題之後，我保證我只有 1 個問題，而且會非常簡短。 （技術難度）是挖礦。我想我們已經討論過幾個數字等等。我只是想了解 Miguel Burnier 是您所在的地區相當長一段時間的情況。是什麼激勵了你？我只想拍一張之前和之後的照片。就這樣

Well, knew that you would come with a very special question like that. Wernecki. I'm used to being left behind. So okay. We have to talk about that later. Okay. But that's a very good question. Miguel Burnier is in an area we've been exploring for quite some time. But we are far from exploring all the possibilities of that area. But the iron belt of Minas Gerais has been reducing the iron content in general. That's a geological phenomenon.

嗯，我知道你會提出這樣一個非常特殊的問題。韋爾內基。我已經習慣了被拋在後面。那麼好吧。我們稍後再談這個。好的。但這是一個非常好的問題。米格爾·伯尼爾 (Miguel Burnier) 是我們已經探索了一段時間的地區。但我們還遠未探索該領域的所有可能性。但米納斯吉拉斯州的鐵礦帶總體上鐵含量一直在降低。這是一種地質現象。

At the same time, if you consider future competitiveness of Ouro Branco, if we create other alternatives to allow the mill to grow in the future. I mean it is growing now. In terms of semifinished, we are exchanging it [by full finish]. I mean we want to be a mill dedicated to finished goods as we are doing now with [BQ]. But we want to create other options for the mill to grow in the future, with low greenhouse gas emissions, et cetera. And everything converged for our decision to make that investment in Miguel Burnier. There is a major advantage because it's physically very close to our Ouro Branco mill.

同時，如果考慮 Ouro Branco 未來的競爭力，我們是否創造其他替代方案來讓工廠在未來發展。我的意思是它現在正在增長。就半成品而言，我們正在以[完整成品]交換它。我的意思是，我們希望成為一家專注於成品的工廠，就像我們現在在 [BQ] 所做的那樣。但我們希望為工廠未來的發展創造其他選擇，減少溫室氣體排放等。所有的一切都促使我們決定對 Miguel Burnier 進行投資。這是一個主要優勢，因為它距離我們的 Ouro Branco 工廠非常近。

So our logistics cost is absolutely low. With this ore pipeline, the logistic cost will be really low. We will no longer have to use trucks, and our ore processing, it only has to cover a distance of 13 kilometers. So with a 5.5 million in capacity, not only for the present, but this will give us more options for the future. This will allow us to be self-sufficient with competitive or in very long term of 40 years. Part of that ore will be sent to Divinopolis, [Cocai] and [Seche Lago]. So in the long run, we will have the adequate competitives with a good level of CO2. So this explains a bit of the rationale when it comes to our decision to make that investment [and capable full].

所以我們的物流成本絕對低。有了這條礦石管道，物流成本就會非常低。我們不再需要使用卡車，我們的礦石加工只需走13公里的距離。因此，擁有550萬個容量，不僅是為了現在，而且這將為我們的未來提供更多選擇。這將使我們能夠在 40 年內實現具有競爭力的自給自足。部分礦石將被送往迪維諾波利斯、[Cocai] 和 [Seche Lago]。因此，從長遠來看，我們將擁有足夠的競爭力和良好的二氧化碳水平。因此，這解釋了我們決定進行投資[並且能力充分]的一些基本原理。

Renata, back to you.

雷娜塔，回到你身邊。

Well, in the benefit of time and I will now conclude our Q&A session. And we from the IR team, we are committed to give you all the answers very briefly. So I'll turn the floor back to Werneck.

好吧，為了時間的方便，我現在將結束我們的問答環節。我們來自 IR 團隊，致力於非常簡短地為您提供所有答案。那麼我將把發言權轉回給韋內克。

Thank you. I would like to thank you all for organizing this session. And also, I would like to thank all of you for all of your questions. On my behalf, on behalf of Japur and Renata, it's always a great pleasure to be with you. Also, I would like to invite you to join us for our next video conference related to our third quarter 2023 results, which will be on November 7. But before that, I would like to take this opportunity to invite you to participate in our Gerdau's stakeholder day. It will be on September 28 in our Museum of Mines and Metal in Belo Horizonte. We will have the stakeholders Day on September 28. And the next day, we invite all of you to visit our mill so you will be more acquainted with that new concept of no-dam mine. And also it's a very good opportunity for us to visit the Ouro Branco mill, and that will give us the opportunity to discuss in more detail some topics that we do not have enough time to discuss in a meeting like the one today. So that's the invitation. And so thank you so much for being with us today, and I hope to see you soon. Take care.

謝謝。我要感謝大家組織這次會議。另外，我還要感謝大家提出的所有問題。我代表我，代表 Japur 和 Renata，很高興與你們在一起。另外，我想邀請您參加我們將於 11 月 7 日舉行的下一次與 2023 年第三季度業績相關的視頻會議。但在此之前，我想藉此機會邀請您參加我們的 Gerdau 會議利益相關者日。展覽將於 9 月 28 日在貝洛奧里藏特礦業和金屬博物館舉行。我們將於 9 月 28 日舉辦利益相關者日。第二天，我們邀請大家參觀我們的工廠，以便您更加熟悉無壩礦井的新概念。這對我們來說也是參觀 Ouro Branco 工廠的一個很好的機會，這將使我們有機會更詳細地討論一些我們沒有足夠時間在像今天這樣的會議上討論的話題。這就是邀請。非常感謝您今天與我們在一起，我希望很快就能見到您。小心。