INDUSTRY ANALYSIS
The years of 2011 began under the continued impact of 2010's expressive performance, characterized by a 7.6% increase in GDP, sizeable economic expansion and increased container handling in the port sector.Although not with the same strength as in 2010, Brazilian GDP grew 2.7% per year and container handling in Brazil grew 7.9%, with performance concentrated primarily in the first half of the year.
The trade flow, which represents the sum of imports and exports, closed out 2011 with growth of 25.7% in value. Among exports, the year's highlights were the chemical materials and plastics segment, as well as transport machinery and equipment, with growth in value of 37.2% and 15.9%, respectively. In imports, the transport machinery and equipment segment grew 20.4% in value over 2010, and among manufactured items growth in value during the year totaled 18%.
The significant growth in foreign trade and the appreciation of the Brazilian Real were factors that propelled the cargo flow in the port segment during the first two quarters of 2011.
However, as a result of global economic tightening and foreign exchange volatility, this scenario began changing as of the 3rd quarter, with a direct impact on import volumes, which fell in the second half of the year. A leading product in the container export area, sugar, was affected by a poor harvest which had repercussions on the port sector's performance in the 2nd half of the year.
At year-end, stabilization of the global scenario and the decline in foreign exchange volatility contributed to a market reaction, culminating in the recovery of growth in container handling posted in the last month of the year.