After the liberalisation of the metal processing sector in the 1990s, it opened itself to foreign capital and the level of competition increased. However, today the iron and steel manufacturing and the processing of non-ferrous metals continues to be dominated by a limited number of large domestic groups, with only a few foreign participants. According to the Sao Paulo-based consultancy Falke Information, as of end-2018, the five largest groups represented more than 85% of the country’s steel production installed capacity. On the other hand, the manufacturing of metal products is characterised by a high level of competition.