Ternium SA (TX) 2023 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Thank you for standing by. My name is Eric, and I will be your conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to the Ternium Third Quarter 2023 Results Conference Call. (Operator Instructions)

謝謝你的支持。我叫艾瑞克，今天我將擔任你們的會議操作員。此時，我謹歡迎大家參加 Ternium 2023 年第三季業績電話會議。 （操作員說明）

Thank you. I would now like to turn the call over to Sebastian Marti. Please go ahead.

謝謝。我現在想把電話轉給塞巴斯蒂安·馬蒂。請繼續。

Good morning, and thank you for joining us today. My name is Sebastian Marti, and I am Ternium's Global IR and Compliance Senior Director. Ternium released yesterday its financial results for the third quarter and the first 9 months of 2023. This call is complementary to that presentation. Joining me today are Ternium's Chief Executive Officer, Maximo Vedoya; and the company's Chief Financial Officer, Pablo Brizzio, who will discuss Ternium's business environment and performance. At the conclusion of our prepared remarks, there will be a Q&A session.

早安，感謝您今天加入我們。我叫 Sebastian Marti，是 Ternium 的全球 IR 和合規高級總監。 Ternium 昨天發布了第三季和 2023 年前 9 個月的財務業績。這次電話會議是對此演示的補充。今天加入我的是 Ternium 執行長 Maximo Vedoya；以及公司財務長 Pablo Brizzio，他將討論 Ternium 的商業環境和績效。在我們準備好的演講結束時，將舉行問答環節。

Before we begin, I would like to remind you that this conference call contains forward-looking information, and that actual results may vary from those expressed or implied. Factors that could affect results are contained in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission and on Page 2 in today's webcast presentation.

在開始之前，我想提醒您，本次電話會議包含前瞻性訊息，實際結果可能與明示或暗示的結果有所不同。可能影響結果的因素包含在我們向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件以及今天網路廣播簡報的第 2 頁。

You will also find any reference to non-IFRS financial measures reconciled to the most directly comparable IFRS measures in the press release issued yesterday.

您也可以在昨天發布的新聞稿中找到與最直接可比較的 IFRS 指標一致的非 IFRS 財務指標的參考資訊。

With that, I'll turn the call over to Mr. Vedoya.

這樣，我會將電話轉給 Vedoya 先生。

Thank you, Sebastian. Good morning, and thank you all for participating in Ternium's conference call today. I am glad to report we have a healthy third quarter. With the consolidation of Usiminas, for the first time, we had a margin of 13%. As you may know, Usiminas' main blast furnace has been off-line for relining, and its operating results in the quarter were affected accordingly. When considering Ternium operations, before the consolidation, we had a margin of approximately 17% in the quarter, which is within our usual margin range. With steel prices recently increasing in the USMCA region and Usiminas starting the ramp-up of its main blast furnace, I am positive that from the beginning of next year, we will see more normalized improved margin performance. With this in mind, we announced yesterday an interim dividend payment of $1.10 per ADS, equivalent to $216 million to be paid on November 16. This represents an increase of $0.20 per ADS, or 22% more compared to last year's interim dividend payment. After my initial remarks, Pablo will go through the details of our performance in the quarter and the explanations for the following ones.

謝謝你，賽巴斯蒂安。早安，感謝大家參加今天的 Ternium 電話會議。我很高興地報告我們第三季表現良好。隨著 Usiminas 的整合，我們的利潤率首次達到 13%。大家可能知道，烏西米納斯主高爐已停線檢修，本季經營績效受到影響。考慮到 Ternium 業務，在合併之前，我們本季的利潤率約為 17%，這在我們通常的利潤範圍內。隨著USMCA地區鋼鐵價格最近上漲，以及Usiminas開始提高其主高爐的產能，我相信從明年初開始，我們將看到利潤率表現更加正常化的改善。考慮到這一點，我們昨天宣布支付每股美國存託憑證1.10美元的中期股息，相當於11月16日支付的2.16億美元。這意味著每股美國存託憑證增加0.20美元，比去年的中期股利增加22%。在我的初步發言之後，巴勃羅將詳細介紹我們本季的業績情況以及對以下各項的解釋。

Let's now review the business environment in our main markets, beginning with Mexico. Apparent steel demand in Mexico remains strong. As we have been discussing during the last conference calls, near-shoring is happening and it's developed is positive for the USMCA consumption of steel. I see this strength has given sustainability to steel demand in the regions for the years to come. In this context, the new capacity and high-end products we can offer now as a result of the investment programs we developed during the last few years enabled us to increase our shipments by 25% in the first month of 2023 compared to the same period of 2022. We are expecting Ternium shipment in Mexico to continue increasing in the fourth quarter, as we have been working on solving certain supply chain bottlenecks which affected the previous quarters. We expect this to happen even though this is the seasonally weakest quarter in the year.

現在讓我們回顧一下我們主要市場的商業環境，首先是墨西哥。墨西哥的鋼鐵表觀需求依然強勁。正如我們在上次電話會議中討論的那樣，近岸外包正在發生，而且它的發展對 USMCA 的鋼鐵消費有積極作用。我認為這種優勢使該地區未來幾年的鋼鐵需求具有可持續性。在此背景下，由於我們過去幾年制定的投資計劃，我們現在可以提供的新產能和高端產品使我們能夠在 2023 年第一個月將出貨量同比增加 25% 2022 年。我們預計第四季度墨西哥的Ternium 出貨量將繼續成長，因為我們一直在努力解決影響前幾季的某些供應鏈瓶頸。儘管這是一年中季節性最弱的季度，但我們預計這種情況將會發生。

Steel prices recently bottomed up in this region. And this is fueling a restocking in the value chain in the commercial market due to low inventory levels. On the other hand, industrial market continued to show rather healthy steel demand. The auto industry in Mexico has not been affected by the strikes in the U.S. The positive price dynamics we are seeing in the USMCA region will be more notable in the first quarter of next year, as the [last] effect of contract prices in Mexico will be a drag on the fourth quarter realized prices.

該地區鋼材價格近期觸底回升。由於庫存水準較低，這推動了商業市場價值鏈的補充庫存。另一方面，工業市場持續呈現較為健康的鋼材需求。墨西哥的汽車工業並未受到美國罷工的影響。我們在 USMCA 地區看到的積極的價格動態將在明年第一季更加引人注目，因為墨西哥合約價格的[最後]影響將拖累第四季度實現價格。

Moving to Brazil. In this quarter, we fully consolidated Usiminas into Ternium's financials for the first time. So let me review the latest developments in Brazilian market. We have always believed the potential of this market is outstanding, but Brazil has recently been going through some challenges. Steel demand in the country is at reasonable levels, but steel imports in Brazil increased by 57% in the first 9 months of the year, reaching the highest level in more than 10 years as a percentage of steel consumption. And about 80% of flat steel imports are coming from China. This is a big concern, not only for Usiminas, but for the whole industrial sector in Brazil. With the surge of steel imports from China, the government of several countries in the Americas, as in the U.S. and Mexico, have taken trade measures to avoid being flooded by unfairly traded Chinese steel. Brazil should follow this same path. The local steel industry has been vocal about the need to defend the country from this dangerous dynamic, and we plan to be very active in this front. In this difficult context, Usiminas has just finished the relining of its blast furnace in Ipatinga. This lengthy investment process, together with a deteriorating steel pricing environment, have certainly cut [the toll] on Usiminas' profitability in the third quarter, and we will not see a significant improvement until early next year when the new facilities are ramped up.

搬到巴西。在本季度，我們首次將 Usiminas 完全合併到 Ternium 的財務報表中。以下我就來回顧巴西市場的最新動態。我們一直相信這個市場潛力巨大，但巴西最近經歷了一些挑戰。該國鋼鐵需求處於合理水平，但今年前9個月巴西鋼鐵進口量增加了57%，佔鋼鐵消費量的百分比達到10多年來的最高水平。約80%的扁鋼進口來自中國。這不僅是烏西米納斯的一個大問題，也是巴西整個產業部門的一個大問題。隨著來自中國的鋼鐵進口激增，美國和墨西哥等美洲國家政府採取貿易措施，以避免被不公平貿易的中國鋼鐵淹沒。巴西也應該走同樣的路。當地鋼鐵業一直強烈要求保護國家免受這種危險動態的影響，我們計劃在這方面非常積極。在這種困難的背景下，烏西米納斯剛完成了伊帕廷加高爐的內襯修復工作。漫長的投資過程，加上不斷惡化的鋼鐵定價環境，無疑降低了Usiminas第三季的獲利能力，而且直到明年初新設施投入使用時，我們才會看到顯著的改善。

Let me finish my comments about Brazil by stating that we are fully committed to Usiminas. In this new stage, we have reinforced Usiminas' management teams since we entered the company 4 months ago. This new team in Usiminas has been working round-the-clock to bring the company to its full potential. Many efficiency increasing initiatives are being designed and put in place. The focus today is on the industrial operations, the heart of the company. We expect this process to be a marathon, not a sprint, but I'm confident that Usiminas will be able to increase its competitiveness and regain its position in the market -- in the Brazilian market.

讓我在結束對巴西的評論時指出，我們完全致力於烏西米納斯。在這個新階段，我們自4個月前進入公司以來，對Usiminas的管理團隊進行了加強。烏西米納斯的這個新團隊一直在全天候工作，以充分發揮公司的潛力。許多提高效率的措施正在設計和實施中。今天的重點是工業運營，這是公司的核心。我們預計這個過程是一場馬拉松，而不是短跑，但我相信烏西米納斯將能夠提高其競爭力並重新獲得其在巴西市場的地位。

Let me turn to Argentina. Although our operation in Argentina continued to perform well in the third quarter with relatively stable shipments, the constraints of imports for production for our company and our value chain have been worsening over time and will likely impact economic activity in the company and in the country. The macroeconomic in Argentina is currently extremely unstable. And the high degree of uncertainty regarding the outcome of presidential election to be held in 3 weeks, make it hard to have a clear picture of the measures the next administration is going to take to tackle this unsustainable situation. The new administration would likely have to put in place a series of needed reforms during 2024, which will probably have a toll in economic activity at the beginning. The sectors with potential to weather the storm and prosper in a better post-reform scenario remain being the energy, Vaca Muerta, mining and agri business sector.

讓我談談阿根廷。儘管第三季我們在阿根廷的業務繼續表現良好，出貨量相對穩定，但隨著時間的推移，我們公司和價值鏈的生產進口限制不斷惡化，可能會影響公司和該國的經濟活動。目前阿根廷宏觀經濟極不穩定。三週後舉行的總統選舉結果存在高度不確定性，因此很難清楚下一屆政府將採取哪些措施來應對這一不可持續的局面。新政府可能必須在 2024 年實施一系列必要的改革，這可能會在一開始就對經濟活動造成影響。有潛力渡過難關並在改革後更好的情況下實現繁榮的行業仍然是能源、Vaca Muerta、採礦和農業企業行業。

Moving now to our sustainability agenda. We are proud to announce that we recently won a bid to extend our wind farm project in Argentina from 72 megawatts of annual capacity to 99 megawatts. This expansion will enable us to replace 90% of the purchased energy for our facilities in the country, reducing a total of over 127,000 tons of CO2 emissions per year. This additional expansion will align seamlessly with our current construction schedule. We are proceeding with a preparatory work, including roads, and expect to initiate the foundation of works this week. We anticipate installing the first turbines by May next year.

現在轉向我們的永續發展議程。我們很自豪地宣布，我們最近贏得了阿根廷風電場專案的投標，將年發電量從 72 兆瓦擴大到 99 兆瓦。此次擴建將使我們能夠取代該國設施 90% 的採購能源，每年總共減少超過 127,000 噸二氧化碳排放。此次額外擴建將與我們目前的施工計畫無縫銜接。我們正在進行包括道路在內的準備工作，預計本週將啟動基礎工程。我們預計明年 5 月將安裝第一批渦輪機。

In Mexico, we are also making progress with our project to build a steel-making facility in Pesqueria using DRI, EAF technology. The facility's emission intensity will be almost 70% lower than the world's average for the BF-BOF route. And we'll be able to produce all qualities of steel demanded by the auto industry. We have already closed most of the most important equipment procurement contracts for the DRI facility, the EAF, and also for the downstream lines like the new coal rolling mill and the galvanized lines.

在墨西哥，我們利用 DRI、EAF 技術在 Pesqueria 建造煉鋼廠的專案也取得了進展。該設施的排放強度將比 BF-BOF 路線的世界平均值低近 70%。我們將能夠生產汽車行業所需的所有品質的鋼材。我們已經完成了 DRI 設施、EAF 以及新軋煤廠和鍍鋅線等下游生產線的大部分最重要的設備採購合約。

Let me now make a few final comments to close these prepared remarks. I am very positive with what's Ternium's ahead -- with what's ahead for Ternium. Although the fourth quarter is going to show a decline due to the works in the blast furnace in Usiminas and the [down] reset of contract prices in Mexico, which we should see improvement beginning in the first quarter next year. One, the blast furnace in Usiminas has ramped up and the new pricing scenario in Mexico reflects on our financials. With a longer-term view, we'll be working on deepening the synergies of our industrial system in the region with the capability to serve our industrial customers seamlessly across the continent. Also, we will be focused on the expansion of our facility in Pesqueria, which will turn into the most sophisticated and sustainable steel industry system in the Americas.

現在讓我做一些最後的評論來結束這些準備好的演講。我對 Ternium 的未來非常樂觀——對 Ternium 的未來。儘管由於烏西米納斯高爐工程和墨西哥合約價格的重置，第四季度將出現下滑，但我們應該會在明年第一季開始看到改善。第一，烏西米納斯的高爐產量已經增加，墨西哥的新定價方案反映了我們的財務狀況。從長遠來看，我們將致力於深化我們在該地區工業體系的協同效應，並有能力為整個非洲大陸的工業客戶提供無縫服務。此外，我們將專注於佩斯克里亞工廠的擴建，該工廠將成為美洲最先進和可持續的鋼鐵工業系統。

All right. Please, Pablo, go ahead now with your analysis of Ternium performance in the third quarter.

好的。 Pablo，現在請繼續分析第三季的 Ternium 表現。

Thanks, Maximo, and good morning to everybody, and thanks again for participating today in our conference call. In today's presentation, we will review our operations and financial performance and the effects of the consolidation of Usiminas in the first -- for the first time in the third quarter of this year.

謝謝馬克西莫，大家早上好，再次感謝您參加今天的電話會議。在今天的演講中，我們將回顧我們的營運和財務業績，以及今年第三季首次合併 Usiminas 的影響。

If we go to Page 3 of the presentation, you will see that Ternium's operating results were relatively strong in the third quarter, in line with operating results in the same period of last year and decreasing moderately on a sequential basis as expected. As you can see in the chart at the top, adjusted EBITDA reached $698 million in the third quarter, up 2% versus the same period of last year and down 22% versus the second quarter. The sequential decrease in adjusted EBITDA was mainly the result of lower real estate prices and higher costs, partially offset by higher steel shipments. Adjusted EBITDA margin in the third quarter was 13%, down from 23% in the second quarter. As Maximo mentioned, this margin was affected on one side by a decrease in realized steel prices in the USMCA market and on the other side by the consolidation of Usiminas' operating results, as Usiminas has recorded almost [nil] margin level in the period. Looking forward, we expect adjusted EBITDA to decrease in the fourth quarter, due to decrease of our core margins, partially offset by slightly higher steel shipments. We will analyze this in more details in the coming slides.

如果我們翻到簡報的第3頁，您會發現Ternium第三季的經營業績相對強勁，與去年同期的經營業績一致，並且按預期環比適度下降。如上圖所示，第三季調整後 EBITDA 達到 6.98 億美元，比去年同期成長 2%，比第二季下降 22%。調整後 EBITDA 環比下降主要是由於房地產價格下降和成本上升，部分被鋼鐵出貨量增加所抵消。第三季調整後 EBITDA 利潤率為 13%，低於第二季的 23%。正如 Maximo 所提到的，這一利潤率一方面受到 USMCA 市場實際鋼材價格下降的影響，另一方面受到 Usiminas 經營業績整合的影響，因為 Usiminas 在此期間幾乎實現了[零]利潤水平。展望未來，我們預計第四季度調整後的 EBITDA 將下降，原因是我們的核心利潤率下降，但鋼鐵出貨量的小幅成長部分抵消了這一下降。我們將在接下來的幻燈片中對此進行更詳細的分析。

Moving on to net results. Adjusted net income and adjusted earnings per ADS decreased sequentially to $323 million and $1.38, respectively, reflecting the decrease in operating result and lower deferred tax results. Adjusted net income was calculated as net result adjusted to exclude a $1.1 billion non-cash loss related to the increase in the participation in Usiminas. We will analyze this in more detail in coming slides.

接下來是淨結果。調整後淨利和調整後每美國存託憑證收益分別下降至 3.23 億美元和 1.38 美元，反映了經營業績的下降和遞延稅業績的下降。調整後淨利潤是根據調整後的淨結果計算的，排除了與 Usiminas 參與度增加相關的 11 億美元非現金損失。我們將在接下來的幻燈片中更詳細地分析這一點。

Let's turn now to our shipments performance on Page 4. In Mexico, expected Ternium's steel shipments reached a new all-time high of 2.1 million tons in the third quarter. Shipments were up 5% sequentially and 24% versus the prior year third quarter, supported by sustained market demand and [an easing] of some logistic constraints affecting our performance in the second quarter. Prospects in this market are quite positive with continued healthy demand in industrial sector at a very active commercial market, driven by lower inventories and increasing steel market prices.

現在讓我們來看看第 4 頁的出貨表現。在墨西哥，預計 Ternium 第三季的鋼鐵出貨量將達到 210 萬噸的歷史新高。在持續的市場需求和影響我們第二季度業績的一些物流限制[緩解]的支持下，出貨量比上一季度增長了 5%，比去年第三季度增長了 24%。在庫存下降和鋼材市場價格上漲的推動下，商業市場非常活躍，工業部門的需求持續健康，市場的前景非常樂觀。

In Brazil, reported volumes in the third quarter were almost entirely attributable to the consolidation of Usiminas. The industrial sector in Brazil accounted for approximately 70% of steel shipments in the period. Looking forward to the fourth quarter, we expect shipments in Brazil to remain relatively stable.

在巴西，第三季報告的銷售幾乎完全歸因於 Usiminas 的整合。巴西工業部門占同期鋼鐵出貨量的約70%。展望第四季度，我們預期巴西的出貨量將保持相對穩定。

In the Southern region, shipments were 603,000 tons in the third quarter, up 7% sequentially, mainly due to the consolidation of Usiminas sales in the country. Looking forward, we anticipate a sequential decrease in steel shipments in the fourth quarter, mostly as a result of the import restrictions in Argentina already mentioned by Maximo.

在南部地區，第三季出貨量為60.3萬噸，季增7%，主要得益於Usiminas在該國的銷售整合。展望未來，我們預計第四季度鋼材出貨量將環比下降，主要是由於 Maximo 已經提到的阿根廷的進口限制。

In Argentina, the uncertainty regarding the steel demand remains high, as a new administration will take office in December and we are expected to see which are the new measures that the company -- that the government will be taking.

在阿根廷，鋼鐵需求的不確定性仍然很高，因為新政府將於 12 月上任，我們預計該公司以及政府將採取哪些新措施。

In the next Page #5, you can see that combining these developments, we arrive at consolidated steel shipments of 4.1 million tons. Looking forward, we expect steel shipments to increase slightly in the fourth quarter. Consolidated net sales were $5.2 billion. Of the total, net sales of steel products accounted for $5 billion, and mining and other product net sales accounted for $221 million. Ternium reported iron ore shipments to third parties of 2.2 million tons in the third quarter, as a result of the consolidation of Usiminas, as Ternium's mining operations in Mexico continue exclusively serving our own iron needs in the country.

在下第 5 頁中，您可以看到，結合這些發展，我們得出的綜合鋼鐵出貨量為 410 萬噸。展望未來，我們預計第四季鋼材出貨量將小幅成長。合併淨銷售額為 52 億美元。其中，鋼鐵產品淨銷售額達50億美元，礦業及其他產品淨銷售額達2.21億美元。 Ternium 報告稱，由於 Usiminas 合併，第三季向第三方發貨的鐵礦石數量為 220 萬噸，Ternium 在墨西哥的採礦業務繼續專門滿足我們自己在該國的鐵需求。

Moving to steel price. Consolidated steel revenue per ton in the third quarter was down sequentially by $74 and decreased year-over-year by close to $160 per ton. In the third quarter, the sequential decrease was mainly the result of the lower steel price in Mexico, with a negative trend in benchmark steel prices was partially offset by higher industry cost -- contract prices. Looking forward, we anticipate realized steel prices to decrease further in the fourth quarter, reflecting lower industrial contract prices in Mexico and lower realized steel prices in Brazil.

轉向鋼材價格。第三季每噸綜合鋼鐵收入季減 74 美元，年減近 160 美元每噸。第三季度，環比下降主要是由於墨西哥鋼材價格下跌，基準鋼材價格的下跌趨勢被較高的行業成本（合約價格）部分抵消。展望未來，我們預期第四季鋼材實際價格將進一步下降，反映出墨西哥工業合約價格下降和巴西鋼材實際價格下降。

Let's now review adjusted EBITDA and net income on Page 6. On the chart at the top, the main reason behind the decrease in adjusted EBITDA was the decrease in realized steel prices and higher cost, partially offset by higher shipments as the consolidation of Usiminas did not (technical difficulty) significant adjusted EBITDA in this quarter.

現在讓我們回顧一下第6 頁的調整後EBITDA 和淨利潤。在頂部的圖表中，調整後EBITDA 下降的主要原因是實現的鋼材價格下降和成本上升，但部分被Usiminas 合併時出貨量增加所抵銷。本季調整後的 EBITDA 沒有（技術難度）顯著。

At the chart at the bottom, you can see the impact of net results of the lower operating income, lower deferred tax results and the non-cash effect to the increase in the participation in Usiminas. The increase in the participation of Usiminas has 2 non-cash effects, a $935 million loss due to the recycling of other comprehensive income to net results and $171 million loss due to the remeasurement of Ternium stakes in Usiminas resulting from the purchase price allocation. The $935 million loss mainly included currency translation adjustments, losses accumulated along the years in connection with the depreciation of the Brazilian real versus the U.S. dollar on the valuation of Ternium stakes in Usiminas. This loss was non-cash. It has no income tax effect and did not change the value of Ternium's equity.

在底部的圖表中，您可以看到較低的營業收入、較低的遞延稅結果以及非現金效應對 Usiminas 參與度增加的淨結果的影響。 Usiminas 參與度的增加產生了2 個非現金影響：由於將其他綜合收益回收到淨利潤中而造成9.35 億美元的損失，以及由於購買價格分配而重新計量Usiminas 的Ternium 股份而造成1.71 億美元的損失。 9.35 億美元的損失主要包括貨幣換算調整，以及多年來因巴西雷亞爾對美元貶值而對 Usiminas 的 Ternium 股份估值造成的累積損失。該損失為非現金損失。它沒有所得稅影響，也沒有改變 Ternium 股權的價值。

Moving on to income tax results. We recorded deferred tax loss at Ternium Mexico and Argentina subsidiary in connection with the depreciation of the local currency to the U.S. dollar.

接下來是所得稅結果。我們在 Ternium 墨西哥和阿根廷子公司記錄了與當地貨幣對美元貶值有關的遞延稅損失。

Now, let's review in the next page our cash performance. Cash from operations was $945 million in the third quarter, aided by a $388 million decrease in working capital. This was mainly due to lower inventories, partially at Usiminas and higher trade payables. Free cash flow reached $563 million in the third quarter after CapEx of $382 million. We invested $119 million in the acquisition of original shares of Usiminas. And in addition, we consolidated Usiminas' net debt position. All in all, Ternium's net cash position increased $200 during this quarter, reaching $2.4 billion by the end of September.

現在，讓我們在下一頁回顧一下我們的現金表現。第三季營運現金為 9.45 億美元，營運資本減少 3.88 億美元。這主要是由於庫存減少（部分位於烏西米納斯）以及貿易應付帳款增加。扣除資本支出 3.82 億美元後，第三季自由現金流達 5.63 億美元。我們出資1.19億美元收購Usiminas原始股份。此外，我們也鞏固了 Usiminas 的淨債務部位。總而言之，Ternium 的淨現金部位在本季增加了 200 美元，到 9 月底達到 24 億美元。

Let's now turn to Page 8 of the presentation to review our performance in the first 9 months of the year. Steel shipments were a little over 10 million tons in the period, increasing 1.3 million tons year-over-year. The main changes between these 2 periods were: on the positive side, shipment increase of 1.3 million tons in Mexico, as already explained, and the consolidation of Usiminas, which added about 1 million tons. On the other side, we have lower shipments in other markets in Southern region, totaling around 600,000 tons, a higher level of integration during 2023 between our Rio de Janeiro slab facility and our operations in Mexico, which [directed] a little over 400,000 tons of slab shipments to the third parties in the comparison.

現在讓我們翻到簡報的第 8 頁，回顧我們今年前 9 個月的表現。期內鋼材出貨量略高於1000萬噸，較去年增加130萬噸。這兩個時期之間的主要變化是：積極的一面是，墨西哥的發貨量增加了 130 萬噸，正如已經解釋的那樣，以及烏西米納斯的合併，增加了約 100 萬噸。另一方面，我們在南部地區其他市場的出貨量較低，總計約60 萬噸，2023 年我們的里約熱內盧板坯工廠和墨西哥業務之間的整合程度更高，[指導]略高於40 萬噸比較中向第三方發貨的板坯數量。

Adjusted EBITDA in the first 9 months of the year were $2.1 billion, decreasing from $3.1 billion in the same period of last year, mainly as a result of lower steel prices, partially offset by lower cost.

今年前 9 個月的調整後 EBITDA 為 21 億美元，低於去年同期的 31 億美元，主要是由於鋼材價格下跌，但部分被成本下降所抵消。

Adjusted net income was $1.5 billion in the first 9 months, lower than the $2.1 billion in the same period of 2022, with adjusted earning per ADS of $6.48. This was the result of lower operating result, partially offset by a higher deferred tax result.

前 9 個月調整後淨利為 15 億美元，低於 2022 年同期的 21 億美元，調整後每股美國存託憑證收益為 6.48 美元。這是經營績效下降的結果，但被較高的遞延稅績效部分抵銷。

Moving on to shareholder return. On November 16, 2023, we will be paying the first part of our yearly dividend corresponding to 2023. The interim dividend announced amounted to $1.10 per ADS, representing 22% increase over the interim dividend paid last year.

接下來是股東回報。 2023年11月16日，我們將支付2023年對應的第一部分年度股息。宣布的中期股息為每份ADS 1.10美元，比去年支付的中期股息增加22%。

Now, in the final Slide #9, you can see Ternium's accumulated cash flow performance. Cash from operations reached $1.6 billion in the first 9 months of the year with stable working capital. This led to free cash flow of $828 million after CapEx of $778 million.

現在，在最後一張投影片#9 中，您可以看到 Ternium 的累積現金流表現。今年前9個月營運現金達16億美元，營運資金穩定。扣除資本支出 7.78 億美元後，自由現金流為 8.28 億美元。

Okay. With this, we finish our prepared remarks. Thank you very much for your time and attention. We are now ready to take any questions you may have. Please operator, proceed with the Q&A session. Thanks.

好的。至此，我們準備好的發言結束了。非常感謝您的時間和關注。我們現在已準備好回答您可能提出的任何問題。請接線生繼續進行問答環節。謝謝。

(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from Carlos De Alba with Morgan Stanley.

（操作員說明）您的第一個問題來自摩根士丹利的 Carlos De Alba。

So the first question is just very simply, what -- do you have a number for Ternium EBITDA ex Usiminas?

所以第一個問題非常簡單，您有 Ternium EBITDA ex Usiminas 的號碼嗎？

Okay. Got to say, we're expecting for your second question.

好的。不得不說，我們期待你的第二個問題。

Yes, I'll have just maybe one at a time.

是的，我一次可能只吃一個。

We have seen the analysis that the different analysts have been doing. It's not exactly the same, the number ex Usiminas because you know that we need to reflect the number of Usiminas accordingly to the adjustment of the purchase price allocation. So the number that we have been reflecting in our numbers of Usiminas is a little above $25 million. In any case, it's a very minor number that we have received from the Usiminas consolidation during this quarter. And as we have already mentioned, both Maximo and myself, we are not expecting to see any different number until the first quarter of next year, where we will be starting to see more normalized level of EBITDA generation.

我們已經看到了不同分析師所做的分析。它並不完全相同，即 Usiminas 的數量，因為您知道我們需要根據購買價格分配的調整來反映 Usiminas 的數量。因此，我們反映在 Usiminas 數量中的數字略高於 2500 萬美元。無論如何，我們在本季度從 Usiminas 合併中收到的數字非常小。正如我們已經提到的，無論是馬克西莫還是我自己，我們預計直到明年第一季才會看到任何不同的數字，屆時我們將開始看到更正常化的 EBITDA 生成水平。

All right. But you're not going to disclose what was the EBITDA before Usiminas?

好的。但您不會透露烏西米納斯之前的 EBITDA 是多少？

No, no, we need -- from now on, we need to be consolidating the numbers altogether.

不，不，我們需要——從現在開始，我們需要完全合併這些數字。

All right. Good. And then the other question I have is, have you -- when do you expect to come up with a plan for Usiminas? Clearly, a lot of things are going on besides just stabilizing the operations, you need to decide whether you're going to invest on repairing the coking oven batteries, if you're going to invest in the mining business, if you're going to restart the Cubatao blast furnaces, or maybe, perhaps you're going to do an electrical furnace there? What do you have in mind? And when should we expect you to announce the plans for Usiminas?

好的。好的。我的另一個問題是，您預計什麼時候為烏西米納斯製定計劃？顯然，除了穩定營運之外，還有很多事情正在發生，你需要決定是否要投資修復焦爐電池，是否要投資採礦業務，是否要投資重新啟動庫巴陶高爐，或者也許，也許你會在那裡建一個電爐？你有什麼考慮？我們預計您什麼時候會宣布烏西米納斯的計劃？

Yes, we don't -- Carlos, Maximo. We don't have a date to announce the plans. We are doing the -- some of the plans we're already taking care and some of the other things we are still analyzing. Clearly, MUSA is a very interest project that, as you know, we haven't decided going through, but in some cases, we are making all the progress so that we can decide if we go through to start it right immediately. There is a team working on that project particularly. Blast furnace in Cubatao, we never came online again. I mean, we will have a plan probably for Cubatao, but in the long term, but we do not include blast furnace for sure.

是的，我們不——卡洛斯，馬克西莫。我們沒有宣布計劃的日期。我們正在做一些我們已經在執行的計劃，還有一些我們仍在分析的其他事情。顯然，MUSA 是一個非常有趣的項目，如您所知，我們尚未決定進行該項目，但在某些情況下，我們正在取得所有進展，以便我們可以決定是否立即開始實施。有一個團隊專門致力於該專案。庫巴託的高爐，我們再也沒有上線。我的意思是，我們可能會為 Cubatao 制定一個計劃，但從長遠來看，但我們肯定不包括高爐。

And for the coke, we have been doing some progress in the coke. We shut down old facilities that we were spending a lot of money. And in the near future, we are going to have the solution for the coke in a much smaller probably scale than when we have to. So all these things we are going through in the day-to-day work, the objective, as you know, is that, all the facilities reach the standard level that we have at Ternium at the end. I mean, we have opportunities in most of the lines of Usiminas and our objective and our plan is to do that, to have the same standards as in Ternium.

對於焦炭來說，我們一直在焦炭方面取得一些進展。我們關閉了花費大量資金的舊設施。在不久的將來，我們將以比必要時小得多的規模提供焦炭解決方案。因此，我們在日常工作中經歷的所有這些事情，如您所知，目標是所有設施最終達到我們在 Ternium 的標準水平。我的意思是，我們在 Usiminas 的大部分產品線中都有機會，我們的目標和計劃就是要做到這一點，達到與 Ternium 相同的標準。

I hope I put some...

我希望我放一些...

That was good. Very good color, Maximo. And just my final question on my end and I'll get back on the queue is, from the -- what is it? It's around 2 point -- yes, almost $3.6 billion in cash and cash equivalents plus other investments that you reported, $1.3 billion are in Argentina. And given what we have seen happening there with the currency, like how do you mark-to-market this cash position that you have in Argentina? What more color can you add there, given that obviously, there is a key concern from the market on this significant amount of cash that you have or equivalents that you have in Argentina?

那很好。顏色非常好，馬克西莫。我最後一個問題是，我將回到隊列中——這是什麼？大約是 2 個百分點——是的，近 36 億美元的現金和現金等價物加上您報告的其他投資，其中 13 億美元在阿根廷。考慮到我們所看到的貨幣方面發生的情況，例如你如何以市價計算你在阿根廷擁有的現金部位？鑑於市場顯然對您在阿根廷擁有的大量現金或等價物表示擔憂，您還能在那裡添加什麼更多的色彩？

Yes, Carlos, let me talk a little bit about that because it's an important thing to mention. As you said, we have, as of September, $1.25 billion in cash based in Argentina. Of that, we have different instruments. As we have mentioned in the past, the way we want to hedge or cover this exposure that we have in Argentina is to the dollar and to use -- in order to do that, we need to use the limited instruments that are available these days in the country. So, we are having a small fraction of that which is related to peso-denominated instruments, which are basically for the day-to-day operation of the company. A significant portion of around $800 million that are based on bonds, Argentine bonds that are quoted in dollars or are denominated in dollars, better said, and other instruments that are directly dollar-denominated instruments like corporate bonds. So this last one are not exposed to any devaluation on the currency or any situation because at the very end are directly dollar instruments.

是的，卡洛斯，讓我談談這一點，因為這是一件值得提及的重要事情。正如你所說，截至 9 月份，我們在阿根廷擁有 12.5 億美元現金。其中，我們有不同的工具。正如我們過去提到的，我們想要對沖或彌補阿根廷所面臨的風險的方式是使用美元——為了做到這一點，我們需要使用目前可用的有限工具在國內。因此，我們有一小部分與比索計價的工具相關，這些工具基本上用於公司的日常運作。約 8 億美元中的很大一部分是基於債券、以美元報價或以美元計價的阿根廷債券（更準確地說）以及其他直接以美元計價的工具，例如公司債券。因此，最後一個不會受到任何貨幣貶值或任何情況的影響，因為最終直接是美元工具。

The issue is in relationship to the Argentine bonds that we need to account for them at the official exchange rate. So there, we are exposed to any devaluation, any fluctuation of the value, the dollar value of that bonds in the international market and also (technical difficulty) that is there between the official exchange rate and the financial exchange rate. So, we found that as the best instrument to protect our money in the country. And we are not -- let's say, we are mark-to-market in that bonds, but take into consideration the official exchange rate, which is the only one that you can use in the country.

這個問題與阿根廷債券有關，我們需要按照官方匯率來計算。因此，我們面臨任何貶值、任何價值波動、國際市場上該債券的美元價值以及官方匯率和金融匯率之間存在的（技術困難）風險。因此，我們發現這是保護我們在國內的資金的最佳工具。我們不是——比方說，我們的債券是按市價計價的，但考慮到官方匯率，這是你在該國可以使用的唯一匯率。

I don't know if I clarified your point, but if you have any other or specific clarification on this point, please let me know and we will try to do that.

我不知道我是否澄清了您的觀點，但如果您對這一點有任何其他或具體的澄清，請告訴我，我們會盡力做到這一點。

Just 1 follow-up there. What is the -- of the $800 million more or less that are in bonds, in U.S. dollar-denominated bonds, how much is Argentine government bonds and how much is private company bonds?

只有 1 個後續行動。在 8 億美元以上或更少的債券中，以美元計價的債券中，有多少是阿根廷政府債券，有多少是私人公司債券？

Of this $800 million that -- this is 100% Argentine bonds. We have an additional $200 million on corporate bonds.

這 8 億美元中，100% 是阿根廷債券。我們還有 2 億美元的公司債。

Okay. All right. And then, about $300 million in peso-denominated instruments?

好的。好的。然後，大約 3 億美元的比索計價工具？

A little bit less. Yeah.

稍微少一點。是的。

Yes, a little bit less because dollar link peso-denominated instruments, among other things, but yes.

是的，會少一點，因為美元與比索計價的工具等掛鉤，但是是的。

Your next question comes from the line of Timna Tanners with Wolfe Research.

您的下一個問題來自 Timna Tanners 與 Wolfe Research 的合作。

I wanted to ask a little bit more about costs. Obviously, things are a little muddied with the addition of Usiminas, but not as close to that story and would be helpful to get a sense of what the cadence of cost could look like once the blast furnace reline is done. Just looking at the per ton numbers, if you have it in that format or whatever way you can share with us, how you think of those costs falling off? And specifically, any thoughts on the fourth quarter cost? With the prices coming down, are we going to see any relief on costs?

我想多問一些關於費用的問題。顯然，烏西米納斯的加入讓事情變得有點混亂，但與這個故事並不那麼接近，並有助於了解高爐襯砌完成後成本節奏可能會是什麼樣子。只要看看每噸的數字，如果你有這種格式或任何可以與我們分享的方式，你認為這些成本下降如何？具體來說，對第四季成本有何想法？隨著價格的下降，我們會看到成本減輕嗎？

Okay. Let me tell first the issue of the cost and then Maximo if you want, you can comment on the pricing environment. So let me first give you a direct answer and then we will try to deepen on that. We are expecting to see very similar cost coming into the fourth quarter. Why? First of all, because we are not seeing much changes in the price of the different raw materials and the prices of slabs that will go through our financials in the fourth quarter. Though, we have finished the relining of the blast furnace in Usiminas, we are not expecting yet to see the impact of that during the fourth quarter. And we are expecting to start to see that during the first quarter of next year. So clearly, we are not reflecting the cost of producing our own slabs in Usiminas, but the cost of imported or purchased slabs. So all in all, we are not expecting to see much changes in the different parts of Ternium in relationship to cost coming into the fourth quarter. And we are expecting to see in the first quarter a decrease in price in the whole Ternium on a consolidated basis.

好的。讓我先談談成本問題，然後Maximo 如果您願意，您可以評論定價環境。因此，讓我先給您一個直接的答案，然後我們將嘗試深入探討。我們預計第四季度的成本將非常相似。為什麼？首先，因為我們沒有看到第四季財務數據中不同原料的價格和板材價格有太大變化。儘管我們已經完成了烏西米納斯高爐的重修工作，但我們預計第四季還不會看到其影響。我們預計將在明年第一季開始看到這一點。很明顯，我們反映的不是在烏西米納斯生產我們自己的板坯的成本，而是進口或購買板坯的成本。總而言之，我們預計第四季度 Ternium 的不同部分與成本的關係不會有太大變化。我們預計第一季整個 Ternium 的綜合價格將會下降。

The other one was prices. Sorry, Timna.

另一個是價格。對不起，提姆娜。

No, I was just wondering about the order of magnitude about how to think about the reline, the magnitude of that cost coming up. I heard that it was going to be lower. I've just wondering if there is any color there.

不，我只是想知道如何考慮重新調整的數量級，以及即將出現的成本的大小。聽說會更低。我只是想知道那裡有沒有顏色。

Clearly, it will be much lower because, as you know, we will be -- we are, at this moment, [as you know] at this moment is purchasing slabs. So the whole margin of buying slab against producing slab will be a gain by the company entering to the first quarter of the year. So whatever number you would like to put to that, it's a quite significant number that will be helping Ternium to recover the profitability and to show a much lower number or a lower number on the cost side together with other things that we need to consider, like the impact of some reduced price on slabs and costs and raw materials.

顯然，它會低得多，因為正如你所知，我們將—我們此時此刻，[如你所知]此時正在購買板材。因此，進入今年第一季，購買板坯相對於生產板坯的整體利潤將是公司的收益。因此，無論您想輸入什麼數字，這都是一個相當重要的數字，它將幫助 Ternium 恢復盈利能力，並在成本方面顯示出更低的數字或更低的數字以及我們需要考慮的其他事項，例如價格下降對板材、成本和原料的影響。

And the other thing, Timna, is that, currently, Usiminas is working with 2 -- the other 2 blast furnace, #1 and #2, which are very small and not very efficient. Number 3 is much bigger and much more competitive. So you are going to change at least one of these small blast furnace for the big one.

另一件事，Timna，目前，Usiminas 正在與另外 2 個高爐合作，#1 和 #2，它們非常小，效率也不是很高。第三名規模更大，競爭力也更強。因此，您將至少將其中一台小型高爐更換為大型高爐。

Got it. That makes sense. Okay. So then the other part of my question is really to your point on prices. So the price hikes that are being announced now in the U.S. are really more of a first quarter story. So for Ternium, given it often lags a quarter because of the contract structure, does that mean these price hikes that are announced now are more of a second quarter story? Or are they also going to be lagging into the first quarter like typical delays in the quarter?

知道了。這就說得通了。好的。那麼我問題的另一部分其實是關於價格的。因此，美國現在宣布的漲價實際上更多是第一季的故事。那麼對於 Ternium 來說，由於合約結構的原因，它經常滯後一個季度，這是否意味著現在宣布的這些漲價更多的是第二季度的故事？或者它們也會像本季的典型延誤一樣落後到第一季？

Yes. For Ternium, and we are talking about Mexico now. Remember, 40% of our shipments in Mexico are commercial spot markets. So, we are seeing from the last 2 or 3 weeks an increase in prices. How much of that is going to be in the fourth quarter is not much. But November and December, we are going to have higher prices than September and October.

是的。對於 Ternium，我們現在談論的是墨西哥。請記住，我們在墨西哥出貨的 40% 是商業現貨市場。因此，我們看到過去兩三週價格有所上漲。第四季的數量並不多。但 11 月和 12 月，我們的價格將高於 9 月和 10 月。

On the other side, the 60% of our shipments are contracts. So, you are clear, we are not having -- we are not going to have any effect on the fourth quarter. And prices in the industrial sector in the fourth quarter are going to be lower. But for the first quarter, we are going to see increases. The amount of those increases still depends a little bit on the increases that we are going to receive in the next several weeks. I think -- everybody thinks that prices, at least in the next couple of months, are going to continue to improve in the USMCA region. So, we are going to see an increase in the first quarter for sure.

另一方面，我們60%的出貨量是合約。所以，你很清楚，我們不會對第四季產生任何影響。第四季工業部門的價格將會下降。但在第一季度，我們將看到成長。這些增加的金額仍然在一定程度上取決於我們在接下來的幾週內將收到的增加。我認為，每個人都認為 USMCA 地區的價格至少在未來幾個月內將繼續上漲。因此，我們肯定會看到第一季的成長。

Makes sense. Okay. If I could squeeze 1 more in. I just wanted to ask about the demand story --. In Mexico, the demand story, sounds really good on reshoring, of course, and manufacturing. But are you not seeing any impact from higher interest rates? Some of the color in the U.S. is certainly some weaker construction activity and concern over automotive. So, any impact from a spillover of the higher interest rates that you can point to in the Mexican region?

說得通。好的。如果我可以再擠 1 個的話。我只是想問一下需求故事 --。當然，在墨西哥，需求故事對於回流和製造業來說聽起來確實不錯。但您沒有看到更高利率的影響嗎？美國的一些色彩肯定是建築活動疲軟和對汽車的擔憂。那麼，您可以指出墨西哥地區高利率的溢出效應有什麼影響嗎？

Yes. To be honest, we are not seeing that yet. And I put yet because we have been talking for the last couple of conference calls that we were expecting some kind of impact, but steel demand is still very robust in the U.S. to be honest. And we are not seeing a decline on demand that is going -- for industrial sectors, that are also dependent on the U.S. Production of car increased like 7% or 8% in the year. All the other industrial sectors are kind of in the same line as last year without any decrease on that. And the commercial market in Mexico is also very strong, although interest rate has increased also in Mexico. Construction is coming back. Inventory in the commercial markets are low. So, we are not seeing this effect yet. I think that in some point, we are going to see that. But this is taking much longer, thanks God, than what we thought. So for now, we are seeing very robust demand in both markets.

是的。老實說，我們還沒有看到這一點。我之所以這麼說，是因為我們在過去幾次電話會議中一直在討論，我們預計會產生某種影響，但說實話，美國的鋼鐵需求仍然非常強勁。我們並沒有看到需求下降——對於同樣依賴美國汽車產量的工業部門來說，今年汽車產量增加了 7% 或 8%。所有其他工業部門都與去年持平，沒有任何下降。墨西哥的商業市場也非常強勁，儘管墨西哥的利率也有所上升。建設正在恢復。商業市場的庫存很低。所以，我們還沒看到這種效果。我認為在某些時候，我們會看到這一點。但感謝上帝，這比我們想像的要長得多。因此，目前我們看到兩個市場的需求都非常強勁。

Your next question comes from the line of Gabriel Simoes with Goldman Sachs.

你的下一個問題來自高盛的加布里埃爾·西蒙斯（Gabriel Simoes）。

First question, I would like to piggyback on Timna's question in the Mexican market. So you mentioned you're still seeing strong demand for the market as a whole. But I just wanted to understand how much room you see for Ternium to continue to gain market share from its competitors in the near term? And if you've seen the dynamics change in the market since the implementation of the higher import tariffs, given that gaining share from imports was also 1 of the goals here with the higher investments in the country?

第一個問題，我想藉用 Timna 關於墨西哥市場的問題。所以你提到你仍然看到整個市場的強勁需求。但我只是想了解您認為 Ternium 在短期內繼續從競爭對手那裡獲得市場份額的空間有多大？鑑於提高進口關稅也是該國投資增加的目標之一，您是否看到自實施更高進口關稅以來市場動態發生了變化？

And the second question here would be on dividends. So you announced higher interim dividends this quarter than you did for the same period of last year. And I wanted to better understand how we should think about cash returns going forward, given that you still have a very comfortable cash position at Ternium, but at the same time, sizable investments to make in the Pesqueria facility and potentially higher investments at Usiminas as well. So just wanted to understand how we can factor all these things in to think about cash returns in the future.

第二個問題是關於股息。因此，您宣布的本季中期股息高於去年同期。我想更了解我們應該如何考慮未來的現金回報，因為您在Ternium 仍然擁有非常充足的現金頭寸，但同時，在Pesqueria 設施上需要進行大量投資，在Usiminas 上可能會有更高的投資，因為出色地。所以只是想了解我們如何將所有這些因素考慮在內以考慮未來的現金回報。

Okay. Gabriel, I start with the first question and it's demand in Mexico. I mean, the demand in Mexico, as you said, is very robust. If you take the 9 months of the year, we are at least 7% higher than last year. So, it's a huge increase in demand. Of course, our shipments increased much more for several reasons. First, our market share against imports, of course, increased. And also, 1 of our competitors is not producing in the market. So that's also helpful.

好的。加布里埃爾，我從第一個問題開始，這是墨西哥的需求。我的意思是，正如您所說，墨西哥的需求非常強勁。如果拿一年中的 9 個月來說，我們至少比去年高出 7%。因此，需求大幅增加。當然，我們的出貨量成長更多有幾個原因。首先，我們相對於進口產品的市佔率當然有所增加。而且，我們的競爭對手之一沒有在市場上生產。所以這也很有幫助。

Now, on what can we gain more, I think we have still a very huge amount of the market that we can gain. Our problem is, how we increase production, because most of our lines today are working at rather full capacity. We have some production in the hot strip mill in Churubusco, and we are increasing that production. And we have to -- I mean, imports today are still at high demand, even though the increase in the tariff. Although we have seen some decrease in September from July and August, there is a big decrease in September. But there's still some import share that we can gain with the capacity we have. So we are very confident that we can continue gaining this market share in Mexico, and we have room for that.

現在，關於我們能獲得更多什麼，我認為我們還有非常巨大的市場可以獲得。我們的問題是如何提高產量，因為今天我們的大多數生產線都在滿載運作。我們在 Churubusco 的熱軋帶鋼廠有一些生產，並且我們正在增加產量。我們必須——我的意思是，儘管關稅增加，但今天的進口需求仍然很高。雖然從7、8月我們看到9月有下降，但9月下降幅度還是比較大的。但憑藉我們現有的產能，我們仍然可以獲得一些進口份額。因此，我們非常有信心能夠繼續獲得墨西哥的市場份額，並且我們有空間。

I hope I clarified a little bit your question, Gabriel, with this.

我希望我能用這個澄清一點你的問題，加布里埃爾。

Okay. Gabriel, let me take your second question. Let me mention, first of all, that the dividend that was announced is just an interim dividend. And in the last 2 years, though, you know that the shareholders meeting needs to approve the final dividend. In the last 2 years, the interim dividend represented 1/3 of the total dividend for the year. So there you have an expectation of the dividend that will be paid on a yearly basis, which, as I already mentioned, would be around 22% higher than we paid last year. So, there you have one reflection of what the company is doing in relationship to capital allocation. So outside the normal usage of cash that the company has, and we have already mentioned many times that the expectation of CapEx for next year is around $1.5 billion without including the CapEx of Usiminas, that we are expecting to see an additional $300 million or around that number for 2024 in Usiminas. So besides that, we are increasing the dividend payment. And as we always mentioned, if the company is in a position, we'll continue to follow that trend.

好的。加布里埃爾，讓我回答你的第二個問題。首先我要指出的是，所宣布的股利只是中期股利。但在過去的兩年裡，你知道股東大會需要批准末期股息。近兩年，中期股利佔當年股利總額的1/3。因此，您預計將每年支付股息，正如我已經提到的，這將比我們去年支付的股息高出約 22%。因此，您可以了解公司在資本配置方面所做的事情。因此，除了公司擁有的正常現金使用之外，我們已經多次提到，明年的資本支出預期約為 15 億美元，不包括 Usiminas 的資本支出，我們預計將額外增加 3 億美元左右2024 年烏西米納斯的這個數字。除此之外，我們還增加了股利支付。正如我們一直提到的，如果公司處於有利位置，我們將繼續遵循這一趨勢。

So, basically, what we are doing is, first of all, financing the CapEx that the company is having. There is a significant level of CapEx coming in next and the following years in order to finalize the project in Mexico, and then sustaining and increasing the level of dividend payment. Besides that, we will continue and we are in a position to continue having a very strong financial position. We think it's important for the years to come in Ternium.

因此，基本上，我們所做的首先是為公司現有的資本支出提供融資。為了完成墨西哥的項目，然後維持和提高股息支付水平，未來幾年將投入大量資本支出。除此之外，我們將繼續下去，並且我們有能力繼續保持非常強勁的財務狀況。我們認為這對 Ternium 未來幾年很重要。

Your next question comes from the line of Rodolfo Adriano Razente De Angele.

您的下一個問題來自 Rodolfo Adriano Razente De Angele。

I have a few questions. My first question is, in this scenario that we're seeing, you mentioned that increase in steel imports in Brazil. We've been hearing the local industry discussing lobbying for increasing taxation of imports. I wanted to hear your thoughts around that. That's my first question.

我有幾個問題。我的第一個問題是，在我們看到的這種情況下，你提到巴西鋼鐵進口的增加。我們一直聽到當地產業討論遊說增加進口稅。我想聽聽你對此的想法。這是我的第一個問題。

Yes, Rodolfo, I think it's something that the Brazilian government has to do. I mean, as I said in my initial remarks, Rodolfo, most of countries, U.S., Mexico, Europe, some Asian countries, they are all protecting against unfair trade, especially from China. I mean -- so if you want to have an industry, which I think is very important in Brazil, you have to have some defense of that industry. It's impossible today if you don't have that. So I think it's very important that the government takes into account, and I'm very supportive of what the local Brazilians are saying. I fully agree with them.

是的，魯道夫，我認為這是巴西政府必須要做的事。我的意思是，正如我在最初的演講中所說，魯道夫，大多數國家，美國、墨西哥、歐洲、一些亞洲國家，他們都在保護免受不公平貿易，特別是來自中國的貿易。我的意思是，如果你想擁有一個我認為在巴西非常重要的行業，你必須對該行業進行一些防禦。如果你沒有那個，今天是不可能的。所以我認為政府考慮這一點非常重要，而且我非常支持巴西當地民眾的說法。我完全同意他們的觀點。

Okay. Second question is more about how do you see mining in this environment? Because we saw Chinese steel hurting steel margins for a number of years in the past. And during that period, it was always challenging for the steel makers. But the ones that had some type of backward integration, especially into iron ore kind of field, came out a little bit better than the rest. You already have exposure to iron ore. So I just wanted to hear your thoughts on how do you see iron ore overall and what's the -- we know about the expansion of MUSA. You mentioned that there isn't a decision yet, but how do you go about it? What are the -- and what do you need to see to make a decision to go ahead with that? And then I have a final question after this.

好的。第二個問題更多的是關於您如何看待這種環境下的挖礦？因為我們過去幾年看到中國鋼鐵業的鋼鐵利潤率受到損害。在那段時期，鋼鐵製造商始終面臨挑戰。但那些進行某種類型的後向整合的企業，尤其是進入鐵礦石領域的企業，結果比其他企業好一些。您已經接觸過鐵礦石。所以我只是想聽聽您對鐵礦石整體的看法，以及我們對 MUSA 擴張的了解。你提到目前還沒決定，但你打算如何做？什麼是－您需要看到什麼才能做出繼續進行的決定？然後我還有最後一個問題。

Okay, Rodolfo. I mean, it's not that we have to take the decision today. We are working in order to analyze and to go all the steps we have before having to make a decision. This doesn't -- as I said, this does not mean that we are not working. I mean, we are working and the decision has to be made, I think, between 1 and 2 years because we are going through from the permission and the environmental permission, we are going through with all the analysis and the quotations and the engineering of the equipment. So we are going through the project of MUSA, as if the project is going through, but the approval of the project, we have to take it in -- I think it's a little bit more than 1.5 years. So, that's the only reason why we are not saying, 1.5 years from now when we have all the engineering, when we do realize what are the different issues of the reserves of the equipment, the final cost of all this engineering, we should make an announcement, if we go through or not.

好的，魯道夫。我的意思是，並不是我們今天就必須做出決定。我們正在努力分析並在做出決定之前採取所有步驟。正如我所說，這並不意味著我們沒有工作。我的意思是，我們正在工作，我認為必須在 1 到 2 年內做出決定，因為我們正在經歷許可和環境許可，我們正在經歷所有的分析、報價和工程。設備。所以我們正在經歷MUSA的項目，就好像這個項目正在經歷一樣，但是項目的批准，我們必須接受它——我認為這個時間比1.5年多一點。所以，這就是我們不說的唯一原因，從現在起 1.5 年後，當我們擁有所有工程時，當我們確實意識到設備儲備的不同問題以及所有這些工程的最終成本時，我們應該做出一個公告，無論我們是否通過。

Okay. Makes sense. My final question is a question I got from an investor and I didn't know the answer. So we, of course, know about the changes between the control and shareholder group. And with Nippon selling out and leaving gradually more room for the Techint Group in Usiminas. And the question I got was about Unigal, if there's any discussion eventually about Nippon Steel selling also their stake there to you or to Usiminas itself, anything changes there or not?

好的。說得通。我的最後一個問題是我從一位投資者那裡得到的問題，但我不知道答案。所以我們當然知道控股集團和股東集團之間的變化。隨著 Nippon 的出售，烏西米納斯的 Techint 集團逐漸騰出更多空間。我得到的問題是關於 Unigal，如果最終有關於新日鐵將其股份出售給你或 Usiminas 本身的討論，那裡有什麼變化嗎？

No, there has not -- Unigal is still or is still, and I think it will be 70% Usiminas, 30% Nippon Steel. I don't think we are going to change that, or there's any plan to change that. Remember, we also have the same facility in Mexico, where we have 51% and Nippon has 49% of that. So for that particular market, for that particular type of line, a galvanized and galvannealed line for the automotive industry, we are very comfortable with this. So I don't see any changes.

不，還沒有——Unigal 仍然是或仍然是，我認為 70% 是 Usiminas，30% 是新日鐵。我不認為我們會改變這一點，或者有任何計劃來改變這一點。請記住，我們在墨西哥也有相同的工廠，我們在那裡擁有 51%，而 Nippon 則擁有 49%。因此，對於特定的市場，對於特定類型的生產線，即汽車產業的鍍鋅和合金化鍍鋅生產線，我們對此感到非常滿意。所以我沒有看到任何變化。

(Operator Instructions) Your next question comes from the line of Carlos De Alba with Morgan Stanley.

（操作員說明）您的下一個問題來自摩根士丹利的 Carlos De Alba 線。

I just wanted to follow-up, Maximo, on the discussion of potential imports -- steel imports in Brazil. Thinking about this, how -- what is the level that you believe it could be feasible for import targets in Brazil? Because I hear you and I hear the Brazilian executives talking about Mexico and the U.S., Canada 20%, 25%. But none of these countries export to China as much as Brazil does. So how can the Chinese government -- sorry, the Brazilian government go and tell the Chinese, we don't want your steel, but we want you to take our iron ore and our proteins and our grains? So it's, I think, a much more complex discussion than it is for Mexico and the U.S. So is it realistic that we can get the 20%? Or is it more likely that we stay maybe at 15%, if we're lucky?

Maximo，我只是想跟進有關潛在進口的討論——巴西的鋼鐵進口。考慮到這一點，您認為巴西的進口目標可行的水平是多少？因為我聽到你和我聽到巴西高層談論墨西哥和美國、加拿大 20%、25%。但這些國家對中國的出口都沒有巴西那麼多。那麼，中國政府——對不起，巴西政府怎麼能去告訴中國人，我們不需要你們的鋼鐵，但我們希望你們拿走我們的鐵礦石、我們的蛋白質和我們的穀物？所以，我認為，這是一個比墨西哥和美國更複雜的討論。那麼我們可以獲得 20% 的份額現實嗎？或者如果我們幸運的話，我們更有可能保持在 15% 的水平？

I think there are 2 different things, Carlos, and make me clear. I mean, going in the primary sector, as you said, grains and iron ore, I think it's more of a commodity market. And so, it's not that China is doing Brazil any favor or Argentina buying the grains. I mean, it's a market -- it's a commodity market where the price is set in a very different environment and has nothing to do with Brazil, China or anything.

我認為有兩件事不同，卡洛斯，請讓我說清楚。我的意思是，正如您所說，穀物和鐵礦石，我認為這更像是一個大宗商品市場。因此，這並不是說中國在幫助巴西，也不是阿根廷在購買穀物。我的意思是，這是一個市場——這是一個大宗商品市場，其價格是在一個非常不同的環境中設定的，與巴西、中國或任何其他國家無關。

In the industrial sector, I think it's very different because what you cannot permit or what you cannot compete with is unfair trade. And what we're talking here is about unfair trade. And that is important. I mean, Canada exports to China a lot. Europe exports to China a lot of equipment and everything. Nevertheless, what we have to do is, respect the rule of law and respect the rule that you cannot sell into a market with unfair practices of trade. And that's the thing that the Brazilian steel industry, and I think other industries should start fighting in Brazil.

在工業領域，我認為情況非常不同，因為你不能允許或不能與之競爭的是不公平貿易。我們這裡討論的是不公平貿易。這很重要。我的意思是，加拿大向中國出口很多。歐洲向中國出口大量設備和一切。儘管如此，我們要做的是尊重法治，尊重不能向有不公平貿易行為的市場銷售產品的規則。這就是巴西鋼鐵業以及我認為其他行業應該開始在巴西戰鬥的事情。

If you see what -- the story of USMCA or the story of Mexico, it's a story of re-industrialization of re-localization but re-industrialization, where clearly you have much more higher salaries for people from the primary sector. And Brazil has gone for the last 10 years in a very different road. And I think that's some of the problems that Brazil is having.

如果你看到USMCA的故事或墨西哥的故事，這是一個重新在地化的重新工業化的故事，但在重新工業化中，顯然來自第一產業的人們的工資要高得多。過去十年，巴西走上了一條截然不同的道路。我認為這就是巴西面臨的一些問題。

And so, making a case for unfair trade -- for defending from unfair trade, it's a very valid case from Brazil, and it's a thing that the government should go back to the -- to their thinking several years ago why they did this. So, I think it's a completely different position. I don't know if you are clear about this, Carlos. And again, it's something that it's making very huge -- I mean, I have a lot of people from Brazil asking me, what is Mexico doing very well because Mexico is doing very well, to be honest. And what Mexico is doing very well, it's exactly this. It's -- the near-shoring is fighting unfair trade. It's not other thing than that. And for Brazil to go this way to have the increase in demand, to have increase in growth, you have to go this way. You have to defend your industry. If not, you're going to primarize even more the economy, which everybody knows is not very good.

因此，為不公平貿易辯護——為了抵禦不公平貿易，這是巴西的一個非常有效的案例，政府應該回顧一下他們幾年前為什麼這樣做的想法。所以，我認為這是一個完全不同的立場。我不知道你是否清楚這一點，卡洛斯。再說一遍，這是一件非常巨大的事情——我的意思是，有很多巴西人問我，墨西哥在哪些方面做得很好，因為說實話，墨西哥做得很好。而墨西哥做得很好的正是這一點。近岸外包正在打擊不公平貿易。除此之外不是別的事。巴西要走這條路才能增加需求、增加成長，就必須走這條路。你必須捍衛你的產業。如果不是，你將進一步優先考慮經濟，而每個人都知道這不是很好。

Your next question comes from the line of Caio Greiner with BTG Pactual.

您的下一個問題來自 Caio Greiner 和 BTG Pactual。

Just a confirmation from my side, the call quality is a little poor here. You guys mentioned your CapEx estimates for 2024. Can you please repeat that?

只是我這邊的確認，這裡的通話品質有點差。你們提到了 2024 年的資本支出估計。你能重複嗎？

We didn't -- I don't know if we mentioned. We did?

我們沒有——我不知道我們是否提到過。我們做到了？

Based on that, we are expecting to have a CapEx for 2024 of $1.5 billion at Ternium and around $300 million for Usiminas.

基於此，我們預期 2024 年 Ternium 的資本支出為 15 億美元，Usiminas 的資本支出約為 3 億美元。

Yes. Remember, Caio, our expected CapEx for Ternium in 2023 was $1 billion, but because of some of the delays in the contract of Pesqueria, that CapEx is going to be $850 million in only Ternium. This $850 million is going to go to $1.5 billion because all the investment in Pesqueria start coming in. And in Usiminas, it's going to decline from $600 million, I think, $650 million this year to $300 million. I think...

是的。 Caio，請記住，我們預計 2023 年 Ternium 的資本支出為 10 億美元，但由於 Pesqueria 合約的一些延誤，僅 Ternium 的資本支出將達到 8.5 億美元。這 8.5 億美元將變成 15 億美元，因為 Pesqueria 的所有投資都開始進來。而在烏西米納斯，它將從今年的 6 億美元下降到 6.5 億美元，降至 3 億美元。我認為...

Your next question comes from the line of Camilla Barder with Bradesco.

你的下一個問題來自卡米拉·巴德和布拉德斯科的線路。

I think most of my questions have been answered right now. So I just wanted to ask a quick question on capital allocation trends. There has been a large working capital release this quarter. So just wanted to get some more color on what you're expecting in terms of working capital in the coming quarters.

我想我的大部分問題現在已經得到解答。所以我只想問一個關於資本配置趨勢的簡單問題。本季釋放了大量營運資金。因此，我只是想進一步了解您對未來幾季營運資金的預期。

Yes. Okay. Camilla, let me comment into that because a significant portion of the working capital release during this quarter was coming from Usiminas. As we were discussing, in order to prepare the relining of the blast furnace, Usiminas need to build up the inventories of slab. So, as the month ago we're through the relining process, they started to use that slabs, all the -- there was capital -- working capital reduction in relationship to it.

是的。好的。卡米拉，讓我對此發表評論，因為本季釋放的營運資金的很大一部分來自烏西米納斯。正如我們所討論的，為了準備高爐的換襯，Usiminas 需要建立板坯庫存。因此，就在一個月前，我們完成了重新襯裡過程時，他們開始使用這些板，所有的——有資本——與之相關的營運資本減少。

In the case of Ternium was also some working capital reduction. And we are expecting to sustain a similar level of working capital in the coming quarters. As we mentioned, we are expecting to see much difference in the cost of our product, in the cost of our raw material and some decrease in the price of our products. So, similarly, or in line with what you saw this quarter in Ternium is what we are expecting to see next quarter in (technical difficulty).

就 Ternium 而言，營運資本也有所減少。我們預計在未來幾季將維持類似水準的營運資金。正如我們所提到的，我們預計我們的產品成本、原材料成本和產品價格會下降。因此，類似地，或與您本季在 Ternium 中看到的情況一致，我們預計下個季度會看到（技術難度）。

Thank you. I would now like to turn the call back over to Ternium's CEO for closing remarks. Please go ahead.

謝謝。現在，我想將電話轉回給 Ternium 首席執行官，讓其致閉幕詞。請繼續。

Thank you, and thank you all very much for participating on today's call. As usual, feel free to contact us if you have any questions. Thank you, again, and good-bye.

謝謝大家，非常感謝大家參加今天的電話會議。像往常一樣，如果您有任何疑問，請隨時與我們聯繫。再次感謝您，再見。

Ladies and gentlemen, that concludes today's call. Thank you all for joining. You may now disconnect.

女士們、先生們，今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝大家的加入。您現在可以斷開連線。