China remained the main trading partner of Brazil in 2019, with trade worth a total of US$98.142 billion, almost the same as the US$98.659 billion registered in 2018, a decline of 0.52%, according to official figures.

In 2019 Brazil sold products to the value of US$62.871 billion to China, against US$63.929 billion the year before and purchased goods in the amount of US$35.270 billion (US$34.730 billion in 2018), thus reducing its balance of trade with that country to US$27.601 billion, or 5.47% less.

The list of Brazil’s five biggest trading partners includes the United States in second place, with a two-way trade of US$59.646 billion, Argentina (US$20.276 billion), the Netherlands (US$12.223 billion) and Japan (US$9.502 billion).

Figures released by the Ministry of Economy show that Brazil’s balance of trade in 2019 recorded its worst performance in four years, with the surplus dropping by 19.6% on year to US$46.657 billion.

The surplus achieved was the result of exports in the amount of US$223 998 million, a decline of 6.38% in comparison with 2018, and imports that fell 2.14% to US$177.341 billion.

The fall observed both in exports and in imports, according to experts cited by the Brazilian press, was due to the weak performance of the world economy, uncertainty regarding the trade conflict between China and the United States of America and the crisis in Argentina, Brazil’s third-biggest trading partner. (macauhub)