28 2016 ing to the borrower’s risk. With a weak economy it is expected that businesspeople and the self-employed will have difficulty in raising the part that is not financed for goods within the BNDES program. “ In the scenario indicated by the business leader, no extraordinary factors that are taking over the market for Brazilian products, such as a Chinese invasion. “In the highway implement market there is no foreign competition. Almost all the products are manufactured in Brazil. The few imports are products for specific and one-off applications whose volume does not threaten Brazilian industry. We have suffered a period of very low sales due much to the economic and political situation the country is facing, and partly because in recent years there has been a clear anticipation of purchases because of exceptional financing conditions prevailing at the time,” he says. Low demand indiscriminately hurts highway implements, regardless of the size and the type of product. “All the segments are affected because they are all linked to a sector of the economy. Of course, some highly specific application might fall outside of the curve, but often these products are a small part of a company’s portfolio, so are not enough to turn the situation around.” Exports could be a good alternative. After all, with the dollar hovering near R$ 4.00, Brazilian products are cheaper for those who pay for them in the US currency. However, to bear fruit in the current economic crisis the relationship between Brazilian companies and international markets should have started long ago. “Exporting takes time to bear fruit. Some companies understand the international market, but most do not yet. Having seen this alternative, Anfir contacted the Brazilian Export Promotion Agency (APEX) and as a result Brazilian businesspeople have been included in APEX business trips whenever there has been an opportunity. Also, this includes trade shows and events of interest abroad, where the structural part, such as stand assembly, is funded by APEX, encouraging the participation of smaller companies.” With his experience facing crises in Brazil before in his company, Alcides Braga sees an answer for the sector in which it operates, but links recovery to other activities. “The highway implement industry depends on other segments. So only the recovery of the economy can help the highway implement industry to recover,” he says. Based on the economic and political environment Brazil was in at the time of the interview, he predicts recovery only in 2017.The president of Anfir says the economy takes a long time to get out of a slump. “We also hope that this is a time for the measures decided on by the government’s economic team to be effectively implemented.” Institucional Institutional © Anatolymas | Dreamstime.com
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