Revista Paint & Pintura - Edição 251

CLIPPING 6 | PAINT&PINTURA | Jan/Fev 2020 The year 2020 has begun with high hopes about the market in general, including the paint and coatings industry, as well as the Brazilian economy. Brazil’s GDP continues on an upward path, with an expected growth rate of just over 2 percent, combined with inflation under control and lower interest rates. Not to mention that, at the close of last year, the country saw a drop in its unemployment rate. Another important piece of news that has direct effects on the paint and coatings industry is about building and construction, which is expected to experience stronger growth this year, while boosting the Brazilian economy in the process. Data from the CBIC (Brazilian Construction Industry Chamber) for 2019 show the industry grew 2 percent over 2018, which, while seemingly unremarkable, is a highly significant figure coming after five consecutive years of decline. Building and construction tends to gain even more steam in 2020 and grow as much as 3 percent. As investments in building and construction are likely to make a more forceful comeback, that will have positive effects on Brazil’s GDP. Notwithstanding all of those positive indications, apprehen- sion about the Brazilian economy persists. Some of the major concerns are about China and Argentina, which directly affect Brazil. More specifically, these refer to the downturn in the Chinese economy and the strong recession in Argentina, which compromise Brazil’s trade surplus. At this point, we just cannot be too careful when it comes to preventing the damage from spreading to our country. The Brazilian Coatings Manufacturers Association (ABRAFATI), during its traditional year-end social function, which took place on December 10 in São Paulo, provided an overview of the country’s economy with the help of the economist Ricardo Amorim, who presented a series of analyses and data points underpinning his optimistic outlook for Brazil, starting from the fact that it is currently a low-cost country for international inves- tors. He also talked about the potential for the actual economic growth to exceed government and third-party expert forecasts, and that people with a good sense of timing will be able to seize the ensuing opportunities. Next spoke Freddy Carrillo, chairman of ABRAFATI’s Board of Directors, whose account of the performance of and prospects for the paint coatings industry converged with the previous speaker’s optimistic outlook. He stressed that the industry is expected to experience a more significant expansion in 2020, ranging from 2 to 3 percent. “After a long six years, sales of decorative paints are going to increase again, and there are positive expectations for coatings intended for other applications as well,” he said, adding that the expected GPD growth for 2020 is even better, ranging from 2 to 2.5 percent. “I believe there will be a rise in consumer confidence, growth in several industries that are users of our products, such as building and construction, infrastructure and a number of others, and the various other factors addressed by Ricardo Amorim. A brighter future is beginning to take shape,” Car- rillo concluded. So let’s stay positive and expect everything to turn around this year. We wish you all an excellent year! Lucélia Monfardini 2020 HAS COME WITH RENEWED HOPE PAINT & PINTURA AWARDS - FINALISTS ANNOUNCED FOR 3RD PAINT & PINTURA REGIONAL AWARDS, NORTH & NORTHEAST Survey names finalists in 22 categories - 16 suppliers, one paint company, and five personalities of the year. Agnelo Editora is announcing the finalists for the 3rd edition of our Paint & Pintura Regional Awards, North&Northeast, whi- ch is taking place on March 6, following the 46th Paint & Pintura Coatings Techno- logy and Management Forum, Northeast Region, to be held in Fortaleza, Ceará. Phase one of the survey started on No- vember 4, 2019 and ended on December 8, 2019. It was followed by phase two for the finalists in the Personality of the Year category, which wrapped up on January 31, 2020. You can find the finalists for the 3rd Paint & Pintura Regional Awards, North & Northeast in this issue in the Portuguese version. INORGANIC CHEMICALS - TRENDS IN PERFORMANCE AND COMPETITIVENESS Inorganic pigments remain power allies in paint color formulations. In line with global trends, these pigments feature lo- wer heavy mental content, while delivery quality and good cost-benefit ratios. Despite the fraught climate for themarket at large and the country’s economy, there have been positive factors in the inorganic pigment industry in 2019, and this is becau- se inorganic pigments are in high demand in the paint and coatings industry. “Notwi- thstanding the lingering crisis in the past several years, we have seen an increase in consumption of this type of pigment. We understand the increased production of paints and coatings to be a major factor in this growing demand, but we have also boosted our sales by stressing the point of difference of each of our products and directing these efforts as appropriately as