Brazilian container imports grow in August due to increased demand for plastics

Exports in containers from South America fell slightly in August 2021 compared to the same month in 2020, while imports continued to grow, albeit at a slower pace than in the previous three months. This is what the newly released DataLiner data for the region for the month of August 2021 point out.

Exports

In the month, Brazilian exports in containers fell 0.79% in relation to August 2020. In the accumulated result for the first eight months of the year, however, Brazil exported 1.908.135,10 TEU against  1.812.898,48 TEU in the same period of 2020, a growth of 5.25%.

See the chart below:

YTD Brazilian Container Exports | Jan to Aug 2019-2021 | TEU

Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)

In Argentina, the drop was 8.9% comparing August 2021 with the same month in 2020. In the year, 345.245,10 TEU were exported by the country against 374.080,10  TEU in the first eight months of 2020, a drop of 7.7%.

It is worth noting that the persistent logistical bottlenecks in maritime transport and the lack of containers have harmed exports. According to the president of the Council of Coffee Exporters of Brazil (Cecafé), Nicolas Rueda, “this serious operational crisis has generated soaring freight costs, constant booking cancellations – container space on ships – difficulty in making new appointments and disputes for containers and space on the ships”, he explains.

According to a survey carried out by the Council with exporters, the obstacles caused Brazil to stop exporting around 3.5 million bags between May and August 2021, which, considering the average prices of shipments, is equivalent to the non-entry of approximately $500 million in revenue to the country.

To try to resolve the bottlenecks in maritime trade, agribusiness exporters and the Parliamentary Agricultural Front (FPA) met with the federal government on September 22 in Brasília to debate solutions to this impasse.

The meeting was with the Secretary for Infrastructure Development at the Ministry of Economy, Gustavo Ene, and other members of the Ministry. There was dissatisfaction among exporters with the lack of dialogue with the government.

The meeting was attended by Cecafé, the Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock of Brazil (CNA), the Brazilian Association of Fish Industries (Abipesca), the Brazilian Cotton Institute (IBA), the Brazilian Association of Meat Exporting Industries (Abiec) and the Brazilian Association of Corn Producers (Abramilho).

Imports

In August, imports grew 18.8% in Brazil compared to August 2020. In the accumulated result for the year, 1.798830,24 TEU were imported in the period from January to August of 2021 against 1.391.967,79 TEU in the same period of 2020, a growth of 29,23%.

See the imported volumes month by month in the chart below:

YTD Brazilian Container Imports | Jan to Aug 2019-2021 | TEU

Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)

In Argentina, the growth percentage in the comparison between August 2021 and August 2020 was  1,53%. In the accumulated result for the year, from January to August 2021, 424.813,93 TEU were imported against 357.133,96 TEU in the same period of 2020, an increase of 18,95%.

When analyzing the growth of imports by product, Plastics drive imports in Brazil, motivated by the reduction of PVC import tax in December 2020 from 14% to 4% by the Foreign Trade Chamber (Camex) and the increase in domestic demand.

According to the Brazilian Plastic Industry Association (Abiplast), the decision to reduce the tax contributes to correcting the structural problem of the closed market monopoly, established about 15 years ago.

“The government is right, as this is an essential product for the economy, given that we are facing shortages”, underlines José Ricardo Roriz Coelho, president of the entity.

Ethylene, which registers the highest volume in the category, increased by 20.49% in volume imported in the eight months of 2021 compared to the same period in 2020. Imports of PVC grew 125.9%, those of propylene 51.83%, and those of polyacetals 42.18% in the same comparison.

Brazilian Import of Plastics | Jan-Aug 2019-2021 | TEU

Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)

It is worth noting that Brazil imports between 25% and 30% of the total resins it consumes.

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