Brazil´s exports to China in the first half of the year, compared to the same period in 2021, were flat in terms of revenue and fell by 11.5% in volume, according to the Brazil-China Business Council (BCBC).
The fall in volume was the biggest in 12 years, according to the same source, while revenue grew by 0.3%. In the same period, Brazilian exports worldwide increased by 20.5%.
Director of research at CEBC, Tulio Cariello, underlined that the slight revenue growth shows that Brazil is benefiting from higher prices of the products exported, despite selling less to China.
“Soybeans, which represented 43% of total exports to China in the first half of the year, are a product whose value is linked to environmental issues, for example”, says Cariello.
BCBC data shows that the three most sold items for the Asian country in the last six months were soybeans, iron ore and oil, respectively.
Cariello adds that exports to the Chinese are forecast to still decline in the coming months, as the ‘Zero Covid’ policy is expected to remain until at least October.
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“It is a specific issue with China, because of this policy adopted by the government. For other countries, such as the United States and Argentina, for example, exports registered an increase of more than 30%”, the CBCB official added.
Imports from China by Brazil grew 30%, like Brazilian imports in general. Fertilizers imports from China increased 212% in volume.