The level of imports in the last month surpassed by almost 400 million dollars that of exports. What were the key sectors?
By iProfessional
03/04/2023 – 20,05hs
Bilateral trade with Brazil in March showed a deficit of US$393 million, product of a year-on-year increase in exports of 21.7% to US$1,184 million and a greater rise in imports (31.6%) to US$1,578 million, reported the consultancy Abeceb.
The result meant the largest monthly trade deficit in the last five yearsspecified the organization based on data from the Ministry of Industry of the neighboring country.
Trade Argentina – Brazil: the worst deficit in the last five years
With the results of March, the commercial exchange in the first quarter of the year accumulated a deficit of US$973 million, a balance that It arises from the difference between the US$2,951 million sold to Brazil and the US$3,923 million purchased. “You have to go back to the first quarter of 2018, to find a larger commercial red than at that time was US$2,041 million”, warned the Abeceb document.
When limiting the analysis to exports, in March they showed an increase of 21.7% year-on-year to US$1,184 million, thus continuing with “an important acceleration in the rate of growth.” The good performance was explained to a greater extent by the performance of the automotive sector.
In this sense, the consultant indicated that “among the products with the highest participation in total exports there are heterogeneous dynamics, with an agricultural sector hit by drought, and an automotive sector that is more than compensating for the drop in agricultural exports.”
Sales to Brazil of “Passenger vehicles” and “Motor vehicles for the transport of goods and special uses” they increased 43.8% yoy and 22.2% yoy, respectively.
Both products were those with the highest participation in total March shipments (together they accounted for 36.1%), the same as so far this year and in 2022.
On the import side, Abeceb explained that in the third month of the year they grew by 31.6% and reached US$1,578 million, the highest amount since April 2018. Almost all the products with the highest share of total imports showed positive figures.
Occasionally, the purchases of “passenger vehicles” and “parts and accessories for motor vehicles” -products with the largest share- grew 73.7% yoy and 32.8% yoy, respectively, and between the two goods accounted for 21.5% of imports from Brazil in March.
Likewise, the acquisition of “iron or steel tubes, hollow profiles and pipe accessories” registered notable growth (it went from US$2.1 million in March 2022 to US$89.9 million in the same month of this year). and represented 5.7% of total imports from the neighboring country.
The Government would limit imports
When estimating the behavior of bilateral trade in the coming months, Abeceb predicted that the Government will adjust imports in a context of shortage of dollars which will be aggravated by the drought that hits the agricultural sector.
“We expect imports from Brazil to continue moving at a slower pace than last year -as they did in the first quarter-, while exports would remain relatively stable -given the low weight of agriculture and the strong traction shown by the automotive industry,” the consultant concluded.
