{"id":278384,"date":"2020-08-12T17:42:46","date_gmt":"2020-08-12T20:42:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/?p=278384"},"modified":"2020-08-12T20:21:08","modified_gmt":"2020-08-12T23:21:08","slug":"throughput-at-brazils-ports-up-4-amid-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/throughput-at-brazils-ports-up-4-amid-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Throughput at Brazil\u2019s ports up 4% amid pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"

S\u00e3o Paulo \u2013 Ports across Brazil saw a 4% increase in cargo throughput year-to-date through May from a year ago. So said the Brazilian Secretariat for Ports\u2019 New Concessions and Port Regulation Policies director, Fabio Lavor (pictured above<\/em>) during the webinar \u201cThe impact of the Covid-19 crisis on Arab logistics: Challenges and opportunities for Arab-South American partnerships.\u201d The event was hosted this Wednesday (12) by the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce<\/strong> (ABCC) and the Union of Arab Chambers, and it got some 900 viewers in Brazil and the world over.<\/p>\n

Lavor said the results were brought about by industry investment and long-term strategy. \u201cOf course we are being affected right now, but we are managing to get by, and one reason is our cargo profile. We are on our way to a record-high throughput this year, when you factor in both exports and imports,\u201d he said. The director urged Arab companies to join the Brazilian government\u2019s privatization efforts, with 13 new concession tenders held in 2019 and another 20 slated for next year. \u201cWe would like to see more Arab participation, particularly in port logistics,\u201d he said. One of the goals is to award management to the private sector at the Port of Santos, which handles one third of trade in Brazil.<\/p>\n

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Yahia Zaki discussed the Suez Canal Economic Zone, which manages the canal as well as several of its ports<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A major player in the Arab world, the Suez Canal Economic Zone has also kept going amid the crisis. \u201cIt was very important to keep up the work in spite of the pandemic. Logistics is a key sector when it comes to supporting small and medium enterprises, which are struggling right now, but play a very important role,\u201d explained Suez Canal Economic Zone chairman Yahia Zaki. The economic zone manages the canal as well as many of its ports.<\/p>\n

Transportation costs are a major hurdle at this time, Zaki said. The biggest challenge in is fast-tracking commodity trade integration between the regions surrounding the canal, which is seen as a gateway for trade in the African continent. He also said his organization is hoping to build rapport with ports in Brazil and South America.<\/p>\n

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Port of A\u00e7u International Business and Innovation director Tessa Major spoke of her work experience during the crisis<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In a bid to brace for the impact of Covid-19, Tessa Major, the vice president for Central and South America at the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH) and International Business and Innovation Director at Port of A\u00e7u, sought out information from her peers around the world. \u201cWe put together a taskforce and we relied on a network of ports to figure out how parts of the world were being affected. That enabled us to draft a document to advise ports regarding global best practices,\u201d said Major.<\/p>\n

The Port of A\u00e7u near Rio de Janeiro acts as a gateway to the state of Minas Gerais. \u201cOur logistics are largely road-based. We will have a regular cabotage route connecting the Port of Rio de Janeiro and the Port of A\u00e7u, starting in September,\u201d she said, in a reference to close-to-shore shipping of goods between two points in one single country. Regarding coronavirus, Major explains that port activity is picking back up slightly. \u201cThe long-term impact is still uncertain, but as a rule of thumb ports are chasing a more risk-resilient profile with additional sources of revenue,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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Pedro Oliveira of Unimar inquired about Arab-Brazilian trade<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Another change in profile, which freight forwarding agency Unimar\u2019s Projects and New Business manager Pedro Oliveira asked about, concerns the type of products traded between Brazil and the Arab countries. \u201cAs oil prices went down, Arab countries must have stepped up their diversification efforts. I think we should look into what types of cargo are selling more of to Brazil,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

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Sarah Elgazzar said food security is a priority in Arab countries<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Foodstuffs will be given preference in shipping, explained the dean of the College of International Transport and Logistics of the Arab Academy for Science Technology & Maritime Transport (AASTMT) and economic adviser to the Union of Arab Chambers, Sarah Elgazzar. \u201cWith Covid-19 and all this dilemma we are experiencing, one might say that the priority for Arab countries is food security. The reason is twofold: food is essential, and commodities can bring added value,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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Mosleh discussed his experience in exports from Egypt to Brazil<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Gulf Freight Group CEO Moataz Mosleh, who ships product from Egypt to Brazil, said sales declined over the past few months, but he expects volumes to pick back up going forward. He believes a few strategies can be outlined to enhance trade with Brazil. \u201cWe need export strategies, like a free trade zone in Santos or other Brazilian ports,\u201d he said, pointing out that the Mercosur-Egypt agreement has made for a better scenario than in the past.<\/p>\n

The event opened with remarks from Union of Arab Chambers secretary-general Khaled Hanafy, League of Arab States assistant secretary-general for Economic Affairs Kamal Hassan Ali, Alexandria Chamber of Commerce in Egypt president Ahmed Al Wakil, senator and Brazil-Arab Countries Parliamentary Group chairman Jean Paul Prates, and ambassador and ABCC International Relations vice president Osmar Chohfi.<\/p>\n

The webinar also featured logistics, supply chain and data science specialist and SCL Big Data Analytics founding partner Marcos Valentini, who discussed new advances in logistics in the Arab world and the world in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis. The event was moderated by ABCC secretary-general and CEO Tamer Mansour.<\/p>\n

For more on the webinar please check out<\/em>:<\/p>\n

Brazilian-Arab shipping not severely affected by Covid-19<\/a><\/p>\n

You can watch the full webinar here<\/em>:<\/p>\n