ETHANOL: INCREASE IN IMPORT QUOTA WILL BENEFIT PRODUCERS

US President Donald Trump celebrated the Brazilian government’s decision to increase its zero-quota import quota for the next 12 months, saying the measure will benefit US producers. “Making great progress for our farmers,” said Trump. An ordinance published in an extra edition of the Official Gazette (DOU) on Saturday, August 31, established that a total of up to 750 million liters of ethanol could be imported into Brazil at zero rate for 12 months. Per quarter, the limit will be 187.5 million liters. Until then, this quota was 600 million liters per year. An additional ordinance regulated how the available quotas will be distributed. Each importing company will be licensed to purchase up to 2.5 million liters of ethanol and may obtain more licenses provided that the sum of volumes is limited to 2.5 million liters. The United States should be the main beneficiaries of the measure because it is by far the largest exporter of ethanol to Brazil. Last year, Americans sold the equivalent of $ 725.4 million of the fuel to Brazilian importers. Paraguay, runner-up, sold $ 973,000.
Source: Canal Rural