Brasília, 8/12/2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - With a trade surplus of US$291 million in the second week of August, the cumulative surplus for the year has now topped US$13 billion (US$13.021 billion, to be exact). For the year, exports were US$40.593 billion, and imports US$27.572 billion. However, in spite of the record surplus, the fact is that Brazil is presently exporting less than it was a year ago. The main reason is the exchange rate, but the situation is further complicated by a Federal Revenue agent slowdown at customs, which has caused a drop of 5.2% in exports.

According to the Secretariat of Foreign Trade (Secex), the daily average of exports fell from US$261.4 million, to US$247.8 million. The reduction has been across the board in all categories of exports (basic, semi-manufactured and manufactured) varying from around 7% to 13%, depending on the category.

And as exports have fallen, so have imports. Secex reports that daily average imports were down from US$189.7 million in August last year, to US$153.3 million this month. Import reductions have varied from electronic-electrical equipment (down 43%), to pharmaceutical goods (down 6%). (AB)