Latin America stories: weekly summary

SAO PAULO (ICIS)–Here are some of the stories from ICIS Latin America for the week ended on 12 April.

NEWS
Argentina’s inflation up to 288% in March, but central bank cuts rates on ‘pronounced slowdown’
Argentina’s annual rate of inflation rose to 287.9% in March, up from 276% in February, the country’s statistical agency Indec said on Friday.

Argentina to scrap import duty on urea and UAN fertilizer
In Argentina, the government plans to remove import duties on urea and urea ammonium nitrate (UAN), which are currently at 5.4% and 3.6% respectively, said Economy Minister Luis Caputo on X, formerly Twitter.

Brazil’s inflation falls below 4% in March
Brazil’s annual rate of inflation fell to 3.93% in March, down from 4.50% in February, and its lowest reading since June 2023, the country’s statistical agency IBGE said on Wednesday.

Brazil’s Unigel ‘vehemently’ denies irregularities in Petrobras contract
Unigel has “vehemently refuted” the existence of any irregularity in its tolling contract with Petrobras for two fertilizers plants, the Brazilian chemicals producer said on Wednesday.

Mexico’s inflation down to 4.2% in March
Mexico’s annual rate of inflation fell in March to 4.2%, down from 4.40% in February, the country’s statistics agency Inegi said on Tuesday.

Argentina PVC sector faces headwinds amid infrastructure investment reductions
Argentina polyvinyl chloride (PVC) sector faces challenges as the government reduces infrastructure investments in 2024, with an estimated 7.5% decrease in projects.

Chile inflation falls to 3.7% in March
Chile’s annual inflation rate fell in March to 3.7%, down from 4.5% in February, according to the country’s statistics office INE.

Brazil’s automotive output barely up in Q1, sales rise 9%
Brazil’s petrochemicals-intensive automotive output rose by 0.4% in the first quarter, year on year, to just below 550,000 units, the country’s trade group Anfavea said on Monday.

PRICING
LatAm PP domestic prices fall in Chile, Mexico on competitive offers from abroad, lower US spot PGP prices
Domestic prices fell in Chile, Mexico due to competitive offers from abroad and lower US spot propylene costs. In other Latin American (LatAm) countries, prices were unchanged.

LatAm PE international prices stable to down on lower US export prices
International polyethylene (PE) prices were assessed as stable to down across Latin American (LatAm) countries on the back of lower US export prices.

Weather conditions start to slightly shift PET demand in Latin America
Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) prices remained stable in Brazil, with a slight softening in consumption coinciding with stabilized temperatures. However, demand continues to exceed expectations when compared with the corresponding period last year.