The number of wildfire outbreaks in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest increased 20% in June and reached its highest level in 13 years, government data showed, and researchers fear that the fact signals a repeat of last year’s forest fire increase. In June, the INPE detected 2,248 outbreaks of fire in the Amazon forest, compared to 1,880 in June 2019.
With restrictive measures adopted in several states to combat the pandemic, electricity consumption in May reached 36,051 GWh in Brazil. A decrease of 11% compared to the same period last year, reports the Energy Research Company (EPE). According to the analysis, the commercial and industrial segments presented falls of 25.1% and 13.7% respectively.
Brazil’s iron ore exports totalled 30.05 million tons in June, an increase of about 1.3% over the same period last year, reported the Foreign Trade Secretariat (Secex). Shipments of the mineral were also up 40% compared to last month, when they totalled 21.5 million tons, a drop of almost 30% compared to May 2019.
Commercial balance is the largest for the months of June of the entire historical series, which began in 1989. The trade balance registered a surplus of $ 7.463 bn in June, the Ministry of Economy reported. Compared to June last year, there was a 38.8% increase in the balance. In the first semester, the government reported a positive balance of $ 23.035 bn, 10.3% less than in the same period of 2019.
The Producer Price Index (PPI), which measures inflation at the output of factories, stood at 1.22% in May this year. The rate is higher than the 0.11% registered in April. The PPI has accumulated inflation of 3.37% for the year and 4.60% over 12 months. Among the four major industry categories, the highest inflation was observed among capital goods 3.08%.
