Brazil has a trade surplus of US$61 billion in 2021

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Still under the effects of the new coronavirus pandemic, Brazil ended the year 2021 with a trade surplus of US$61.008 billion, reported this Monday (3) the Foreign Trade Secretariat (Secex) of the Ministry of Economy.

The amount was the result of exports of US$280.394 billion during last year, minus imports of US$ 219.386 billion. The value is a record for a single year.

According to the Secretariat, the country recorded a total trade flow of US$499.780 billion during the period.

The trade flow, which reflects the sum between imports and exports of products in general, is one of the indicators used by economists to measure the country’s degree of openness to international trade. The higher the trade flow, the greater the exposure.

Product exports last year, in values, grew 34.0%, considering the average per business day. Imports, on the other hand, increased 38.2%.

The US$61.008 billion surplus in 2021 surpassed by21.1% the result obtained in 2020, when the balance had been positive at US$50.393 billion.

In presenting the numbers, Secex justified the result highlighting the “strong world recovery in 2021, as a result of the increase in vaccination and stimulus programs in countries with available fiscal space”.

In addition, the secretariat cited the scenario with high commodity prices. “Countries like Brazil have had their exports boosted to a record level, with welfare gains coming from increased terms of trade,” it noted.

DECEMBER SURPLUS

According to the Secretariat, the Brazilian trade balance in the last month of the year was in surplus by US$3.948 billion. The figure was the result of US$24.366 billion in exports and US$20.418 billion in imports. Exports surpassed imports also in December.

The trade flow in the last month of the year totaled US$44.784 billion.

PROJECTIONS

Secex also released its first calculations for the trade area on Monday in 2022. According to the Secretariat, the projection for the trade balance in the year is a positive balance of US$79.4 billion – therefore, about 30% higher than in 2021.

The secretariat’s estimate for exports in 2022 is US$284.3 billion, while the projection for imports is US$204.9 billion.

According to the Foreign Trade Secretary of the Ministry of Economy, Lucas Ferraz, these projections do not consider the risk of a new wave of covid-19 harming international trade.

“We do not work with the possibility of a new wave of covid that could distort these forecasts,” Ferraz said during a press interview.