Brazil at the Big 5 a heavyweight supplier

Dubai, UAE, 18 November 2008: Brazil is promising a big presence at Dubai's forthcoming Big 5 Show, the leading civil construction industry trade fair in the Arab world. The Brazil Pavilion, organized by the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil) in partnership with the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, will bring together 37 companies in the ceramic facings, ornamental stones, bathroom metals, door locks and construction products & projects sectors. The Brazil Pavilion at the Big 5 Show will occupy a 480 square meter area in the central hall. It will be the Brazilians' fifth time at the show, which just keeps growing in size and stature every year. The main goal of Brazil's presence at the show is to present buyers with a wide variety of construction materials manufactured in Brazil. "It will be great for Brazil to showcase its vast selection of construction materials at the Big 5. The Brazil Pavilion has been at the show a number of times before, and it is great to be returning this year with an ever-greater selection of materials to display", said Maurício Borges, Business Director of Apex-Brasil. "Coming back to the Big 5 Show in Dubai is certainly very important for us. It is a great venue to showcase Brazil's construction industry", he added. According to the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, the Brazilian construction industry is booming with US$ 8.27 billion exported in 2007, representing growth of 8.95% compared with the previous year. The main destinations for exports have been the United States (US$ 1.78 billion), Argentina (US$ 872 million) and the Arab countries (US$ 379.91 million). As a single export destination, the Arab countries ranked third in the list of destinations for Brazilian exports of construction material, after purchasing the equivalent to US$ 379.91 million in 2007. Among those Arab countries, the leading destination was the United Arab Emirates with US$116.12 million. "The Arabian market is especially important for us in terms of exporting construction materials. And as statistics show, it is the UAE which is leading the way in purchasing these materials", said Borges. Brazil's major role in the global stone industry has seen its exports equating to over 8 million tones a year of granite, slate, quartzite, marble and other natural materials. In global ranking for these products, Brazil leapt from 12th position in 1999 to 5th position in 2006, and in 2007 the country became the leading supplier of stones to the United States. The popularity of the stones in the Arab countries is in no small part to the variety of colours and textures available, and also because they are offered along with complementary products and services. Brazil also counts itself as a leader in the ceramic manufacturing industry, with a 4th place ranking in output worldwide - a similar level to those of Spain and Italy. These Brazilian ceramics have been performing particularly well in the Arab market, with exports to the region up 12.4% in the first quarter of 2008, in comparison with the same period last year. In addition, the non-ferrous metal artifacts sector (which includes products such as bathroom metals, door locks, and aluminium household utensils) produces the equivalent of US$ 2.4 billion and generates 93,000 formal jobs.