São Paulo – Brazil stepped up by 29.2% its revenue from sales to the Arab countries year to date through April, the Market Intelligence department of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) reported based on numbers of the federal government. Exports went from USD 4 billion from January to April 2021 to USD 5.2 billion year to date.
The high prices of the majority of leading goods exported weighed on the increase, as Brazil mostly sells foodstuffs to the Arab market, whose prices have gone up globally due to the pandemic and the Russian war. But the performance also reflected the increase in the shipped volumes of some products like soybeans, maize and wheat.
The leading export from Brazil to the Arab market year to date through April, in values, was iron ore. But the sales of the product were down by 17% to USD 925 million. Shipped volumes decreased slightly. The second leading export was poultry at USD 882 million, up 23% in values. The growth also reflected the higher prices, as the volumes shipped were down by 2%.
The third leading export from Brazil to the Arabs this year has been sugar, at USD 728 million, up 15% in revenue, but down 5% in volume. Fourth came soybeans, up 100% in revenue to USD 518 million and 48% in volume. Beef was the fifth leading export at USD 426 million, up 88% in revenue and up in volume as well.
Other highlights in exports from Brazil to the Arab market were maize and wheat, ranking sixth and seventh. Brazilians grossed USD 358 million from maize exports to the Arabs, up 64% in value and 30% in volume. As for wheat, a product that is currently in short supply on the global market, Brazil sold 326% more and fetched USD 311 million, up 485% from a year ago.
Taken together, the Arab countries remain as Brazil’s third leading market overseas, only behind China and the United States, which rank first and second, respectively. The leading buyers of Brazilian products in the Arab world are Egypt, in first place, followed by the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, and Bahrain, in that order.
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
