Gasoline Cargoes to Brazil May Rise on Ethanol Drop in JBC View

Bloomberg
By Rob Sheridan - May 18, 2012 10:28 AM CT

Gasoline shipments to Brazil from the U.S. and Europe may rise as slumping ethanol production encourages consumption of the auto fuel, JBC Energy GmbH said.

Brazilian ethanol production fell more than 40 percent from a year earlier in April, the Vienna-based consultant said in a report today, citing data from the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association, or Unica. Output of hydrous ethanol, sold at pumps in Brazilian filling stations, slid 18 percent, JBC said.

Brazil, the world’s biggest sugar producer, uses its sugar- cane crop to make ethanol as well as the sweetener. Shrinking ethanol supplies in the country will mean lower use of the biofuel for transportation this year, spurring demand for gasoline, JBC said.

Read more