Brazilian Industry Has Worst Performance Among Developing Countries

05/13/2013 - 08h14

The performance of Brazil's industry in 2012 was the worst among 25 developing countries and important economies of Latin America. The 2.6% decline in Brazil's industrial production was the greatest by far in the group. Egypt in second place had a 1.9% decline.

Brazilian industry as a component of the G.D. P. (Gross Domestic Product) - which, aside from manufactured products, includes sectors such as civil construction and electric energy - also had the biggest decline in the developing world - a slump of 0.8%.

Daniel Marenco/Folhapress

Production chain of Trucks in Resende, in Rio de Janeiro

The data are from British consultants EIU (Economist Intelligence Unit) and they show that the sector's crisis is persistent. In 2011, the results of Brazilian industry were among the three worst in the group analyzed.

Specialists say the figures confirm that domestic problems have had a greater influence on industry than the foreign crisis. "These data are very worrisome. The foreign crisis affected everyone, but we were worse than all others," says Flávio Castelo Branco, economic policy manager of CNI (National Industry Confederation).

GLOBAL SLOWDOWN

Robert Wood, an EIU analyst, says the expansion in the global trade of manufactured goods declined from 6.3% in 2011 to 2.5% in 2012. He also says the decline led to a slowdown in global industry. "In a scenario of excessive supply of manufactured goods, uncompetitive countries, such as Brazil, suffer more."

The decline in Brazilian industry in 2012 contrasts with the sector's strong expansion in Asian countries. Brazil's performance also was below the main Latin American markets and even that of developing countries of Europe, a region that is at the center of the international crisis.
Economists say industry is likely to have a better performance in 2013. But data already disclosed show that the recovery is still fragile.

Translated by THOMAS MUELLO
Read the article in the original language