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 Brazil's agricultural sector recorded the highest job generation rate in June 2008 in the country, according to data from the General Records Office for Employment and Unemployment (Caged), disclosed by the Brazilian Ministry of Labor.
The sector was responsible for the creation of 92,580 out of a total of 309,442 job positions during the period, the highest monthly figure recorded ever since the historical series was initiated, in 2003.
According to the minister of Labor, Carlos Lupi, the sector's good performance is explained by seasonal factors. "The harvesting period begins this month. Furthermore, there is investment in state-of-the-art technology, which improves production. Another factor is exports. Brazil is exporting a lot, breaking all sorts of records, and that leads businessmen to invest more and hire more workers," he stated.
The agricultural sector's record-breaking exports are 15.22% higher than the previous figure, recorded in June 2005. In comparison with the month of May, there was growth of 5.67%.
According to Lupi, coffee farming, especially in the state of Minas Gerais (Southeast), was responsible for the expansion. The state answered to 38,869 of the total of 40,067 jobs generated by coffee farming.
Another highlight is grape production, for which the highest job generation rates were recorded in the northeastern states of Pernambuco and Bahia.
Agricultural income should total 155.27 billion reais (US$ 71.4 billion) in Brazil in 2008, according to the Strategic Management Advisory (AGE) at the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply. The income is calculated based on crop surveys by the National Food Supply Company (Conab) and the Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics (IBGE).
The value estimated for this year concerns 20 crops, including temporary ones such as soybean, maize, rice, wheat, sugarcane, and permanent ones such as coffee, cocoa, orange and grape. Compared with last year, the figure represents growth of 17.11% after inflation.
Among the products surveyed, cotton, sugarcane, cassava, black pepper, tomato and grape will see a reduction in come compared with 2007, as a consequence of price and quantity effects. With the exception of cassava, the remaining products had price reductions.
Another 14 products saw an increase in income in 2008. The greatest increments were those of bean (87.78%), coffee (48.69%), wheat (40.79%), soybean (31,83%) and maize (30.65%). Income results per region show that the Midwest and the South have the highest income expansion rates in comparison with last year.
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