Trade balance hits US$ 4 billion surplus in November

Brazil exported US$ 4 billion more than it imported in November, according to data released on Monday (3 December) from the Ministry of Industry, Foreign Trade and Services (MDIC). The surplus was the result of US$ 20.9 billion in exports and US$ 16.8 billion in imports.

In year-to-date terms, the trade remains positive at a US$ 51.6 billion surplus. The numbers also show that Brazil has done more business with the rest of the world.

Trade flows, which are the sum of all imports and exports, has grown from US$ 338.2 billion last year to US$ 388.3 billion. According to Abrão Neto, Secretary of Foreign Trade at MDIC, this increase shows the higher quality of Brazilian international trade. "The performance of Brazilian trade surpasses the results of last year in quality and size. Export and import amounts in year-to-date terms for November already surpassed the full-year amounts for 2017," the secretary said. "We now have stronger trade, which created more jobs and income in Brazil this year".

Brazilian Products

Soy was the highlight among the top exports, with US$ 31.6 billion in sales in the year, followed by crude oil with an expressive US$ 22.9 billion. Among products with higher added value, pulp had US$ 7.5 billion in exports and automobiles had US$ 4.9 billion, making them the top performers in the category.

China has remained the largest buyer of Brazilian products. In the year through November, the Asian country purchased US$ 61.3 billion in good from the country. The United States comes second with US$ 26.3 billion, followed by Argentina with US$ 14.2 billion.