São Paulo – Brazilian cooperatives reached export records in the first quarter of this year. Sales of products to foreign countries amounted to US$ 1.293 billion, a volume 6.5% higher than in the first quarter of 2011. According to the Brazilian Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade, this was the best result of cooperatives since records started being kept, in 2006.
Refined sugar was the main product exported during the period. The resulting revenues, US$ 297.3 million, were equivalent to 23% of total export revenues. It was followed by coffee bean (13.7%), soy chaff (10.8%) and edible chicken offal (10.7%). These products combined accounted for 58.2% of total exports from Brazilian cooperatives from January to March 2012.
Imports increased by 12.7% in the first quarter and reached US$ 54.7 million. Urea was the main product imported by cooperatives, at 16.6%. Machinery and meat processing equipment accounted for 10.2% of imports, and ammonium dihydrogen phosphate accounted for 7.5%.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
