São Paulo – The Brazilian trade balance started September with a surplus. According to data released this Monday (5) by the Ministry of Industry, Foreign Trade and Services (Mdic), in the month’s first two business days exports totaled USD 1.497 billion, with imports reaching USD 1.009 billion. The resulting surplus was USD 489 billion.
Exports’ daily average was USD 748.7 million, 2.6% less than the average in September last year. In this same comparison, there was a decline of 9.8% in foreign sales of basic goods, due especially to the performance of soy beans, soy bran, coffee beans, grain maize and raw cotton.
But exports of semi-finished products climbed 7% due to raw sugar, sawn wood, synthetic rubber and factice, butter, fat and oil, cocoa and skins. Sales of finished products also increased in 4%, driven by flexible iron/steel pipes, cargo vehicles, ethanol, electric engines and generators, passenger vehicles and polymers.
Imports registered a daily average of USD 504 million in September’s first two business days, a decline of 19.8% over the average of the same month in 2015. Driving down purchases were mainly fuels and lubricants, organic and inorganic fertilizers, steel products, mechanical equipment and optical and precision instruments.
Year-to-date, exports have reached USD 125 billion, with imports at USD 92.2 billion. The resulting surplus is USD 32.8 billion.
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
