We reaped good fruit. We strengthened our capacity to promote and support the continuous evolution of the company, while advancing decisively in the design of long-term strategic scenarios and direc- tions, by taking forward the definition of what we call the Future Gerdau.We reduced our financial leverage and had a strong gener- ation of free cash flow, which also contrib- uted to the preparation for a new cycle. As we see it, the future demands a Gerdau that differs from the traditional model of a simple producer of steel. We should be- come increasingly present in the Americas market as providers of services and prod- ucts with high value added. For this transformation, we will follow the trail of innovation in the steel value chain. Gerdau had great achievements and results among the best in the second decade of the 21st century, but the company of tomorrow will be even better. We also evolved on important issues, such as our diversity and inclusion programs, and maintained high levels of safety in the workplace by recording the best result in Gerdau’s history in the Severity Rate — a measure of the level of risk of workplace accidents. That’s how we materialize our purpose — “Empower people who build the future.” All these initiatives are essen- tial for us to remain strong players in a dy- namic market, which will continue to be very competitive. Sustainability was another topic that was on the agenda during the year and that is one of the foundations for our future. It means planning for the next 100 years of Gerdau and achieving the company’s pur- pose. A Sustainability Policy — drafted in 2019 and approved in early 2020 by the Board of Directors — now guides our stra- tegic decisions, taking into account environ- mental, social and governance (ESG) issues. Also on this subject, we joined the Unit- ed Nations Global Compact and expanded our participation in national and interna- tional forums and pacts dedicated to dis- cussing and promoting the role of compa- nies as agents of social transformation. In the same vein, in 2019 we set off on our certification journey as Company B, a rec- ognition of global reach assigned by the non-profit organization B Lab to companies that seek, through their activity, to achieve economic and financial results while gen- erating positive impact on society. We began a long-term work to define the company’s strategy for the coming years, which we call Futuro Gerdau (Gerdau Future). As a Strategic Direction, Gerdau will strengthen its position in the steel value chain in the Americas, with a strong emphasis on increasing value for stake- holders, through investments in the com- petitiveness of its current assets, mergers and acquisitions.