2013 is likely to be a very difficult year for agribusiness logistics in Brazil, according to a report from Rabobank. Transport costs in the country have risen significantly due to three factors: new legislation impacting the working hours of truck drivers, a sharp increase in diesel prices and rising export volumes for major commodities.
The International Air Transport Association released figures for airfreight markets in April which showed modest growth of 1.4 percent compared to April 2012. This small increase helped to offset the 2.6-percent decline recorded in March compared to the year-ago period. And it continues an 18-month trend of basically no growth in the cargo markets.
Nelson Cabrera, director of business development at Lilly and Associates, provides first-hand information on the operation of Panama's Colon Free Zone.
Few observers doubt the immense potential of Brazil, one of the world's most significant emerging economies. Indeed, Brazil has great advantages. Compared with its colleagues in the BRIC quartet of emerging giants, it is richer than India and China and larger and more democratically stable than Russia. It is the largest nation in Latin America, with one-third of the region's population generating 44 percent of its GDP. Already the sixth-largest economy in the world, it could become the fifth by 2020, according to forecasts by the Economist Intelligence Unit. But growth, and the investment decisions that underpin it, doesn't happen by magic. Substantial growth takes enlightened government and well-informed decisions by potential investors.
