Brazilian imports increase with the fall of the euro

Brazilian companies have used the euro lower, in the first five months of the year to increase the pace of Brazilian imports from Europe. Waiver of the Foreign Trade Secretariat (Secex) of the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade show that the total revenue of foreign purchases of Brazil from the countries of the euro area rose to $ 11.715 billion, from January to May. It was the highest of the last two years, 29.6% higher than calculated in the same period in 2009 (U.S. $ 9.038 billion) and 4.6% more than recorded in the first five months of 2008, before the global crisis ( U.S. $ 11.198 billion).

The low exchange rate of the euro this year due to the scenario of turbulence on the mainland because of the economic crisis in Greece, is evident in the weekly performance of the currency. According to the service agency quotes state, the weekly average of the euro in the first five months of 2008 was R $ 2.60, in the first five months of last year was R $ 2.96, from January to May 2010, was R $ 2.43.

The Association of Foreign Trade of Brazil (AEB) already points to the possibility that the rhythm of Brazilian imports originated in the euro area below the high this year. The vice president of AEB, José Augusto de Castro explained that the major purchases made by Brazil in the euro zone countries are machinery, equipment and auto parts. He did not rule out the possibility of an increase in imports of European machines. However, commented that while the euro may initially stimulate foreign purchases, the impact on total imports this year will not be very expressive.

In a lecture at the Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Economico e Social (BNDES), the economist Luiz Gonzaga Belluzzo commented that entrepreneurs have heard that there is a strong movement to replace domestic production by imports.

This new Brazilian appetite for foreign purchases, coming from the European Union, has started to pull up the overall performance of imports by at least one sector. Secex data show that imports of motor vehicles, tractors, parts and accessories, which are among the products most imported by Brazil from European countries have already reached $ 1.44 billion in the first five months of this year, almost double the calculated same period in 2009 (U.S. $ 730.9 million), slightly surpassing the first five months of 2008 ($ 1.35 billion).

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