Abiquim proposes agenda to tavkle deficit
Valor Econômico 04/09/2009
The Brazilian Chemical Industry Association (Abiquim) decided once again to get into a fight against the commercial deficit of the sector, which accumulated a negative balance above US$ 23 billion all over last year. Under the hand of the new chairman of the council of directors of the Abiquim, Bernardo Gradin, the entity proposes an agenda for the development of the Brazilian Chemical Industry that attacks the causes of the commercial deficit. "The intention is to have an industrial policy for the sector", affirmed Gradin.
According to him, who is also the CEO of Braskem, the largest Brazilian petrochemical industry, the agenda of the Abiquim will try to find ways to stimulate the public and private investment to strengthen the productive chain of the Brazilian chemical industry. Among his ideas are changes to the pricing policies for the raw material supplied by Petrobras; greater offer of naphtha and gas for diversification of the portfolio of chemical products; greater access to energy by the industrial consumers; increase of and access to infrastructure; changes to the law, including a more competitive tax legislation; and credit lines aimed at the export, among other issues. Bernardo Gradin recalls that the Brazilian chemical industry will face a more challenging scenario ahead. Besides the best known competitors, like the American and European producers, arise new players in the world market. "Countries of the Middle East and Asia, specially China, discovered that in order to socially develop themselves they need to create and add value to the base productive chains", said the new chairman of the council of the Abiquim. "In these regions, there are, for instance, subsidies in the supply of naphtha and gas. In case there isn't some equality in relation to our competitors, we will get behind", he diagnoses, who does not talk about protectionism to the National industry, but in a leveling of opportunities.