Brazil to Become Net Importer of U.S. Ethanol, Czarnikow Says

Bloomberg Businessweek
November 22, 2011, 1:16 PM EST
By Isis Almeida and Tony C. Dreibus

Nov. 22 (Bloomberg) -- Brazil will become a net importer of U.S. corn-based ethanol as high sugar costs create a shortage of the biofuel in the South American country, boosting the price link between the crops, C. Czarnikow Sugar Futures Ltd. said.

Brazil has imported 500 million liters (132 million gallons) of ethanol from the U.S. since 2010, equal to 800,000 metric tons of sugar or 1.2 million tons of corn, Czarnikow said in a report today. Millers in Brazil are using more sugar cane to produce sweeteners instead of ethanol, the broker said.

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