According to the president at the organization, Dilson Ferreira, the performance has surpassed expectations. In late 2006, the association forecasted a 4.5% growth in sales volume for 2007. For the first time ever, the amount of paint sold was greater than 1 billion liters in a single year.
To the president at Abrafati, the sector benefited from the heating up of the civil construction sector, which is experiencing a boom in Brazil, from the record-breaking performance of the automobile industry last year, and from the growth of the Brazilian industry as a whole.
"Sales of paint also rise, as they are present in virtually every manufactured product," said Ferreira, according to a press release issued by the organization.
Other factors listed by him as having contributed to the good performance were the country's real interest rates, which remained below 10% per year, the greater credit supply, the longer periods for payment and the rise in income of Brazilian citizens, as well as incentive measures aimed at certain segments of the economy.
Ferreira believes that this set of conditions should persist in 2008, which leads him to forecast a 7% growth in sales volume once again.
According to information supplied by the Union of the Paint and Varnish Industry of the State of São Paulo (Sitivesp), product exports also had a positive performance, despite the depreciation of the Brazilian real against the dollar.
Although consolidated data are not yet available, the union estimates that foreign sales in 2007 totaled US$ 136.5 million, an increase of 14% in comparison with 2006.
Chicken Exports
Brazil exported 3.3 million tons of chicken last year, an increase of 21% compared with 2006. Export revenues totaled US$ 5 billion, a growth of 55%. The results were record highs for the sector. The information was disclosed by the Brazilian Poultry Exporters Association (Abef).
The Middle East remains as the leading destination for Brazilian poultry exports. In 2007, 984,000 tons were shipped to the region, a 30% increase compared with the previous year. Revenues from sales stood at US$ 1.3 billion, 63% more than in 2006. Next came the European Union, Asia, Russia, Africa and South America.
For this year, the Abef is expecting a lower growth rate, of 8%, both in volume and in revenues. The association forecasts a rise in production costs, especially due to the increase in prices for corn, soybean and fertilizers. The forecast also takes into account negative prospects regarding the performance of global economy.
Anba