June 21, 2012
Brazil's January-May fertiliser imports down 26%
Brazil's January-May 2012 fertiliser imports from the Arab countries dropped to US$269.8 million from US$365.8 million in the same period of 2011, a decline of 26%, according to the Brazilian Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade.
In terms of volume, the decline was sharper, at 32%, down from 755,800 tonnes to 514,300 tonnes.
According to Tom?s Huyer, the director of the Intertrade Group, a Rio Grande do Sul state-based fertiliser importing company, Tunisia, one of the countries that supply Brazil, drastically lowered its output due to domestic problems. Labourer strikes taking place across several industries in the country are causing Tunisia to generally lower its exports. The country supplies mostly superphosphate and its products to Brazil. As to the remaining Arab supplying countries, Huyer claims that he sees no reason for a decline in imports.
He believes it was a seasonal phenomenon, and that a switch in suppliers is not underway. The Brazilian market, says the executive, should increase its imports as the year goes by.