Brazil's chemicals trade deficit hits record high in first 4 months

Recently, statistics released by the Brazilian Chemical Industry Association show that in the first four months of 2022, driven by the substantial increase in the import of fertilizers and pesticides and other related chemicals, Brazil's chemical trade deficit reached 17.3 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 53.5%, a record. new highs.

Affected by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the new crown epidemic, global logistics are not smooth, and chemical production has declined. As a result, Brazil's chemical imports totaled 17.1 million tonnes in the first four months of the year, down 0.5% year-on-year. Among them, the total import value of fertilizers, intermediate products and pesticides and other related products amounted to 22.8 billion US dollars, accounting for 40.2% of the total chemical imports. Among them, the total import of chemical fertilizers is 6.7 billion US dollars, and the pesticide import is 9.2 billion US dollars. The association said that due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the average price of fertilizers during the first four months of this year reached US$568 per ton, a year-on-year increase of 133.8%; the price of pesticides reached US$9,023, an increase of 25.3%. In addition, the import value of chemicals increased significantly by 48.7% year-on-year, hitting a record high for the same period.

On the other hand, Brazil’s chemical exports during the same period totaled 5 million tons, down 4.9% year-on-year. However, exports of organic chemicals rose by 7.2%, and resins and elastomers (TPE) rose by a substantial 25.5%. Chemical exports totaled US$5.5 billion, up 35.6% year-on-year. Brazil's chemicals trade balance posted a deficit of $52 billion in the first 12 months to April. The chemicals trade deficit is expected to reach $55 billion this year.