SAO PAULO: Brazilian steelmaker Usiminas hopes to raise steel prices in the local market by 2% or 3% in the third quarter, due to higher international iron ore prices, company executives said on Friday.

Usiminas released quarterly earnings earlier in the day, posting net income of 171 million reais ($45.5 million), reversing losses from a year earlier and sending its share price up 1.5% in Sao Paulo trading.

Executives said in a call with analysts that they had revised downward their projection for investments during 2019, to 800 million reais, from a previous estimate of 1 billion.