Geovana Pagel
São Paulo – The Arab countries located in the Middle East and North Africa are already responsible for 8.5% of Paraná state (in southern Brazil) export. Between January and October 2003, export has reached record US$ 6.07 billion, a figure that is already 7% higher than total exports in 2002, US$ 5.70 billion.
To give an idea of the magnitude of Paraná state export to the Arab region, agriculture minister Roberto Rodrigues states that total Brazilian export to the bloc, in 2002, was 4.3%.
State import between January and October 2002 was US$ 2.85 billion, generating a surplus of US$ 3.23 billion, 36% over the surplus for last year, which was US$ 2.37 billion.
Regarding agribusiness export in the same period, the figure is US$ 4.08 billion, 12% over the export registered in 2002. According to economist Gilda Bozza Borges, the coordinator of the Paraná State Agriculture Federation (Faep) data bank, and the person responsible for the analysis, these figures show good export results and confirm the excellent development of Brazilian agribusiness.
"In Paraná, agribusiness is responsible for 67% of export," says the economist. According to her, the soy complex represents 37% of total export and has generated revenues of US$ 2.25 billion, also greater than the export result for the genre in 2002, which totaled US$ 1.95 billion. The growth has therefore been 16%.
Soy grain export showed a 22% increase of over grain export in 2002, reaching the total of US$ 1.05 billion for the January/October period. "The increased demand and recovery of international prices were one of the main factors for this increase," explains Borges.
The average export price of soy grain in the period was US$ 209.46 per ton. Ground soy export generated revenues of US$ 761 million. Crude soy oil export reached US$ 348 million and refined soy oil export was US$ 99 million.
The meat sector (poultry, cattle, pork, and others) is the third largest exporter reaching the figure of US$ 517 million. It is important to point out that this is 11% over total export for this area in 2002, US$ 467 million. "To the Middle East the item that has shown the greatest export growth was poultry (chicken), in special cuts," specifies the economist.
Considering poultry sales growth, values for the sector totaled US$ 385 million. Cattle beef sales have also surpassed the 2002 export figures, reaching US$ 49 million. Export revenue for pork has totaled US$ 71 million, and is already 22% above 2002 export.
Forestry products exported a total of US$ 737 million. Wood export, the second most important group in this area, reached US$ 609 million. Paper and cardboard export revenue totaled US$ 128 million.
Income for sugar export reached US$ 150 million, with a total export volume of 948 million tons.
In other sectors, corn made US$ 255 million, coffee (in grain and soluble) US$ 131 million and the leather sector US$ 37 million.
Economic blocs
In terms of economic blocs, the European Union was a very important commercial partner, participating in around 30% of Paraná state export, buying a total of US$ 1.83 billion.
In second place came Asia, at US$ 1.33 billion, 22% of the total. Apart from the Middle Eastern countries and North Africa, Paraná has also exported to the United States, and to Mercosur, the Common Market of the South, a customs union between Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay.
