São Paulo – Brazilian exports of capital goods totaled USD 7.8 billion last year, down 2.9% over 2015. “The appreciation of the real in 2016 again damaged the competitiveness of the Brazilian processing industry,” said this Thursday (26) the Brazilian Machinery Builders’ Association (Abimaq).<\/p>\n
The association points out that the devaluation of the real against the dollar in 2014 and 2015 had driven up the sector’s foreign sales, but that this cycle was broken with the appreciation of the Brazilian currency last year. <\/p>\n
Shipments of oil and renewable energy machinery, agriculture, infrastructure and basic industry machinery, and components to the capital goods industry all declined. However, exports of consumer goods machinery, machinery to the processing industry and to logistics and civil construction industries.<\/p>\n
The main destinations for products of the sector were Latin American countries, Europe, United States and China. In 2016, among these markets, Brazilian exports increased only to the Asian country.<\/p>\n
Brazilian imports in the sector also declined in 2016. “Due to the weak local demand, imports declined 18% and ended the year at USD 15.4 billion,” reported Abimaq. An increased occurred only in the infrastructure and basic industries due to the steel sector.<\/p>\n
The United States were the main suppliers of Brazil last year, followed by China, Germany, South Korea, Italy and Japan.<\/p>\n
Revenues<\/strong><\/p>\n The sector’s net revenues went down 24.3% in 2016 in comparison to 2015 to BRL 66.3 billion (USD 20.83 billion), the lowest level since 2003, according to Abimaq. It was the fourth consecutive year of declining revenues of the sector.<\/p>\n The apparent consumption (domestic sales plus imports) of BRL 100.84 billion (USD 31.68 billion) declined 24.9% over 2015. “The record decline [of apparent consumption] makes it clear that the improvement in confidence [in Brazilian economy] wasn’t enough to drive up investments and reflects the high idle capacity and high corporate indebtedness, a scenario worsened by high interest rates,” said the association. <\/p>\n *Translated by Sérgio Kakitani<\/strong><\/p>\n