The change was requested by the Ministry of Health on December 30. The Ministry of Health explained to the Ministry of Economy that the measure is necessary “so that the Federal Government can implement the National Immunization Plan with the necessary inputs to carry out all stages of the scheduled vaccinations, without prejudice to the COVID Vaccination Plan”.

“The Ministry of Health clarifies that it asked the Ministry of Economy to temporarily stop the export of surplus syringes and needles from sales contracts to foreign and domestic markets signed between Brazilian companies and their customers. Thus, only amounts in excess of the lots already contracted will be affected”, stated a note on January 3rd.

In the note, the Ministry also said that “there is a satisfactory stock of syringes distributed at vaccination stations in Brazil. These supplies can even be used to initiate vaccination quickly and safely”.

An April 2020 law allowed a ban on the export of medical, hospital, and hygiene products essential to fighting the pandemic of the new coronavirus. The law cited personal protective equipment, mechanical ventilators, hospital beds, and multiparameter monitors, but allowed the inclusion of other items by an “Executive Power Act”.

The regulation of the law, however, requires a special license for the export of products included in the list of prohibited items.

In its request to the Economy, the Ministry of Health cites the auction held on December 29, in which the portfolio only managed to acquire 2.4% of the total syringes and needles it intended to buy for vaccination against Covid-19. The auction foresaw the purchase of a total of 331 million syringes, but the companies that participated guaranteed delivery of only 7.9 million.

Companies that participated in the electronic auction complained that the announcement ordered syringes and needles as a single product and that the prices were below those practiced.

According to the estimate of the Superintendent of ABIMO (the Brazilian association of medical and dental equipment and products), Paulo Henrique Fraccaro, the national industry today produces 1.5 billion syringes and exports do not represent even 10% of this total (between 100 and 120 million).

Source: G1

In an interview with Valor Econômico newspaper, the executive stated that Maersk has not yet revised its projection for Brazil in 2020, due to uncertainties regarding how long the social isolation measures will last.  He said that before the pandemic, expectations were already of modest growth in the container shipping market of around 3.8%.  “The volumes seen at the beginning of the year were within expectations. The outlook for after the second quarter will be the most difficult. In the third quarter, the situation should start to improve.  By the fourth, we expect volumes to return to normal,” said the executive.

According to the report, the company’s projection was based on China’s experience as it was the first country to suffer the effects of the Covid-19 crisis, and now has returned to practically normal activities.  Even so, the Maersk executive considers that the situation in Brazil may be a little different, since imports are expected to suffer more severely.  With the devaluation of the Brazilian currency, products from abroad are much more expensive. Mexico and Chile have also felt this effect.

On the other hand, our exports are expected to do better than the global average, since the profile of Brazilian exports – with agricultural commodities making up a large share – contributes to the resilience of the market. “The demand for food stocks in the world is stable, even with the quarantine,” says Nielsen.

The problem is that the mismatch between imports and exports causes a shortage of containers, especially reefer containers. “Within a week, the availability of containers may become tighter, but I do not believe that they will be lacking. What may happen is longer delays in deliveries,” says Nielsen. To rebuild stocks of the equipment, Maersk has been loading additional containers onto its vessels, he says.

According to the executive, it is too early to assess how global trade will react after the epidemic, but “we have heard from large companies that they may seek to reduce pressure on their supply chain, which means increasing their inventories, in case of any logistical problem,” he says. In addition, “there is a tendency to look for more suppliers, who are closer. This could lead to a change in sea routes. However, it is too early to predict these effects,” he concludes.

Source: Valor Econômico

Secex’s foreign trade classifications of transport types have suffered significant distortions for 2018 export data. MDIC’s data is received systematically through SERPRO, the Brazilian government’s federal service for data processing, and the type of transport information is not yet being supplied correctly to the new foreign trade system. The problem can be seen in the below graph where the mode of transport “Unknown” grows to significant amounts over recent months and highlights the recent drop in transport type classification:

MDIC are working to revert this situation. 

Secex exports statistics by via | M US$ FOB | 2018

Brazil’s export revenues fell by 28.3% to US$109.799m in the first ten months of 2018, year-on-year. China continued to be Brazil’s top export destination, although export revenues dropped significantly by 7% to US$37.897m compared to the same period last year. Exports revenue fell for almost all the top twenty countries, including the US, Argentina, Netherlands, and Spain by 28%, 39%, 30%, and 8% respectively. The following SECEX table ranks Brazil’s top trading partners on the export side in US$ million:

Brazil’s imports were up 18.5% between January and September, at US$109.095m. This was mainly due to China, with imports from the country has grown by 27% to US$22.944m during that period, YoY. Imports from the US and Germany increased by 19% and 13% respectively during the same period, while Argentina and Mexico saw a massive 37% and 29% jump in import revenues to Brazil. The following table uses SECEX data to show how the countries rank regarding exporting to Brazil in US$ million:

Top Commodities Roundup

Revenue generated from oil seeds and oleaginous fruits rose 11% to US$26.018m between January and October period, year-on-year. Other significant increases were mineral fuels, oils, waxes and bituminous substances (8%) and pulp and other cellulostic material (5%). The largest drops in export revenues came from ores, slag and ash, down 56% year-on-year; apart from that, iron and steel (24%), vehicles and parts and accessories thereof (40%), sugar and sugar confectionery (60%), meat and edible meat offal (67%), , and coffee, tea maté and spices (48%). The SECEX table below shows Brazil’s export commodity ranking for the first ten months year-on-year in US$ million:

Import revenues rose significantly for the following commodities (see the table below for detailed rankings):

1. Mineral fuels, mineral oils, bituminous substances; mineral waxes (20%)
2. Nuclear reactors, boilers, machinery, and mechanical appliances; others (14%)
3. Vehicles other than railway or tramway rolling stock, and parts and accessories thereof (38%)
4. Electrical machinery and equipment and parts thereof; others (12%)
5. Organic chemicals (25%)
6. Plastics and articles thereof (13%)
7. The largest increased observed with ships, boats, and floating structures (1418%)

Revenues fell for the following top 20 commodities:

1. Beverages, spirits, and vinegar (16%)

Brazil’s export revenues fell by 21.2% to US$108.26m in the first nine months of 2018, year-on-year. China continued to be Brazil’s top export destination, although export revenues dropped by 2% to US$36.9m compared to the same period last year. Exports to Spain, Chile, and Turkey held up well, up 2%, 2%, and 18% respectively. Some of the largest drops observed were in the United States, Argentina, Netherlands, Germany, and Japan, at 20%, 31%, 21%, 31%, and 44% respectively. Brazil’s imports were up 18.5% between January and September, at US$97.2m. This was mainly due to China, with imports from the country having grown 28% to US$ 20.4m during that period, YoY. Imports from the US and Germany increased 18% and 12% respectively during the same period, whilst Argentina and Mexico saw a massive 38% and 30% jump in import revenues to Brazil.

Top Commodities Roundup

Revenue generated from oil seeds and oleaginous fruits rose 12% to US$25.2m between January and September, year-on-year. Other significant increases were mineral fuels, oils, waxes and bituminous substances (14%), pulp and other cellulostic material (17%), and residues and waste from food industries (18%). The largest drops in export revenues came from ores, slag and ash, down 51% year-on-year; apart from that, iron and steel (12%), vehicles and parts and accessories thereof (32%), sugar and sugar confectionery (56%), meat and edible meat offal (62%), and coffee, tea maté and spices (41%).

Import revenues rose significantly for the following commodities:·

• Mineral fuels, mineral oils, bituminous substances; mineral waxes (20%)·
• Nuclear reactors, boilers, machinery and mechanical appliances; others (14%)·
• Vehicles other than railway or tramway rolling-stock, and parts and accessories thereof (41%)·
• Electrical machinery and equipment and parts thereof; others (13%)·
• Organic chemicals (22%)·
• Plastics and articles thereof (12%)·

The largest increased observed with ships, boats, and floating structures (1586%)Revenues fell for the following top 20 commodities:·

• Beverages, spirits and vinegar (12%)