Brazil's Iron Ore Exports Surged in April

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The latest trade statistics published by the Secretariat of Foreign Trade (SECEX) under the Ministry of Development, Industry and Commerce (MDIC) of Brazil indicates notable jump in iron ore exports by the country during the month of April this year. The monthly exports surged higher by nearly 8%, mainly on account of sharp jump in agglomerated ore shipments. It must be noted that the Brazilian exports had registered 7.5% decline during the first quarter of 2018.

The iron ore exports by Brazil totaled 25.878 million tonnes (Mt) in April this year, higher by 7.6% when compared with the exports that had totaled 24.048 Mt in April 2017. The total value of exports dropped significantly from $1.623 billion in April last year to $1.485 billion in April 2018. The drop in value was mainly on account of the sharp decline in iron ore prices over the year. The average iron ore export prices registered 15% decline over the year from $67.5 per tonne to $57.4 per tonne.

China was the largest destination of Brazilian ore exports. The exports to China totaled 13.264 Mt, accounting for more than half of the total ore exports by Brazil during the month. The exports to that country averaged at $54.7 per tonne and were valued at $725.92 million. The second largest importer was Japan, whose imports from Brazil totaled 2.406 Mt. The other major ore export destinations were Portugal (1.190 Mt) and Oman (1.134 Mt).

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The shipments of agglomerated iron ore surged higher by 38.6% in April this year to total 2.774 Mt. It must be noted that the exports had totaled only 2.001 Mt in April 2017. The average export price was up by 7%. Meantime, the exports of non-agglomerated iron ore too increased modestly by 4.8% over the previous year. However, the value of imports dropped by more than 15%, thanks to sharp 19% year-on-year decline in average export prices during the month.