Agência Brasil*
Brasília – Brazilian exports totalled US$ 3.33 billion in the third week of May, the same amount recorded in the previous week. In the meantime, purchases of foreign products reached US$ 2,02 billion, a 17.89% decrease compared with the second week of the month. This reduction resulted in a trade balance surplus (exports minus imports) of US$ 1.3 billion.
This was the highest surplus recorded in a single week so far this year, and it raised the accumulated surplus for the month to US$ 2.7 billion. What is more, this result was achieved in only 13 out of 22 business days this month. Thus, there are still nine business days left before the end of May, and the strong pace of foreign trade already indicates that the surplus recorded in the same month last year (US$ 3.016 billion) will be overcome.
The accumulated surplus for the year stands at US$ 15.69 billion, a 5.8% increase over the US$ 14.83 billion recorded during the same period in 2006. This surplus resulted from total exports of US$ 55.01 billion (+ 19.7%) and of imports equivalent to US$ 39.32 billion (+ 26.4%).
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum