RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – On May 3, Uruguay reported a 28% inter-annual growth of its exports at the end of April, amounting to US$1.1 billion, with China as the first destination.
According to the promoting entity Uruguay XXI, in the first four months of the year, sales of goods, including in free trade zones, increased by 35% compared to the same period of 2021.
A report released attributed this export dynamism to beef, paper pulp, and soybeans, followed by wheat and vehicles, whose entrepreneurs are the only ones who accumulated profits during the years of the pandemic and swelled bank accounts inside and outside the country.
The latter is what President Luis Lacalle calls “gold mesh,” freed from tax burdens because they will allegedly trickle down benefits to workers. Still, the Frente Amplio refuted this claim, given the numbers of Uruguayans who fell into the poverty line.
The remaining items invoiced with an increase were wood, dairy products, and plastics, while rice, pharmaceuticals, unprocessed barley, and beverage concentrates suffered a fall.
China consolidated its position as Uruguay’s primary buyer with 32%, followed by Brazil (15%), Argentina (10%), and the United States and the European Union, with 9% each.