In 2020, despite the pandemic, Brazil raised almost 20 billion dollars (110 billion reais) thanks to this, and this year it should significantly surpass that figure.
In addition, it is one of the countries that are benefiting most from not being part of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) cartel, which in recent years has imposed quotas on its members to reduce total supply and stabilize the market.
By being exempt from this limit, Brazil took the opportunity to increase its sales to Asia, by far the continent that imports the most oil. “It's the biggest beneficiary of the bloc,” says Lisa Viscidi, head of Energy at the Inter-American Dialogue analysis center. "It exports a lot, mainly to China, and sales remained at high levels even in the worst moments of the pandemic."
Brazil. In a few years, the undisputed regional leader went from being a country affected by the high oil prices, which worsened its trade balance, and started to be clearly benefited.
“Historically, whenever the price went up, it was a tragedy. Now, that's good for him,” says Monaldi. In the meantime, several important discoveries have made the Latin American giant one of the key names on the world oil map and the largest net exporter in the strip of land that runs from Ushuaia to the Rio Bravo. |
