Brazil's Container Imports Rise 9.5% Through September 2026

Brazil's container imports rose 9.5% from January through September 2026, compared with the same period in 2025, according to Datamar's Business Intelligence team. Inbound volumes reached 2.85 million TEUs, a unit equivalent to one 20-foot container. September alone recorded a 14% year-on-year increase.

Growth was concentrated primarily in vehicles and auto parts, which accounted for more than half the net increase in imports over the nine-month period. China also strengthened its position as the leading origin of inbound cargo. On the export side, container shipments grew 4.2% in the first nine months of the year but fell 1.7% in September.

The chart below tracks Brazil's container imports from January through September of each year since 2023, based on DataLiner figures.

Brazilian Container Imports | Jan–Sep 2023 to Jan–Sep 2026 | TEUs

Source: DataLiner – explore Datamar's trade data

What Drove Brazil's Container Imports in 2026?

Among the main commodity groups, imports of vehicles and auto parts increased 44.9%, reaching approximately 420,000 TEUs from January through September. The sector accounted for 14.7% of Brazil's total containerized import volume.

In absolute terms, the category added around 130,000 TEUs, equivalent to 52.6% of the net increase of 247,300 TEUs in container imports. While several sectors posted gains, vehicles and auto parts generated more than half the overall growth.

Imports of rubber (24.4%), paper (24.3%), boilers, reactors and machinery (5.8%), textiles (5%) and plastics (4.7%) also rose. In contrast, volumes of pesticides declined 11.6%, while electrical equipment fell 3.5%.

The differences between product categories make it important to examine individual markets, even when headline import figures are rising.

China Accounts for 54.3% of Brazil's Container Imports

China expanded its lead as the main source of Brazil's container imports. In the first nine months of 2026, shipments from China rose 22.6% and made up 54.3% of inbound volume, up from approximately 48.5% in the same period of 2025. That represents a gain of 5.8 percentage points.

Imports from China increased by roughly 285,000 TEUs. That gain exceeded the total net increase of 247,300 TEUs because declines in shipments from other countries offset part of China's growth.

The trend is also evident in broader trade statistics. According to Brazil's Ministry of Development, Industry, Trade and Services (MDIC), imports from China reached $58.62 billion from January through September, up 9.9% in value year on year.

The figures measure different things: MDIC's statistics cover merchandise imports across all transport modes, in dollars, while the DataLiner figures discussed here measure seaborne containerized cargo in TEUs.

DataLiner also recorded growth in imports from Egypt (35.8%) and India (3.4%). The United States, Brazil's second-largest origin with a 5.9% share, posted a 31.4% decline. Volumes from Germany, Italy and Belgium also fell, by 6.8%, 6.5% and 4.3%, respectively.

These shifts help identify changes in sourcing patterns. A commercial assessment, however, also requires a closer look at the products, companies and ports involved in each trade flow.

Brazilian Container Exports Rise 4.2% Over Nine Months

While Brazil's container imports grew 9.5%, its containerized exports totaled 2.44 million TEUs from January through September 2026, an increase of 4.2% from the same period a year earlier. September, however, saw a 1.7% year-on-year decline.

The chart below shows how container exports performed over the January–September period in each year since 2023.

Brazilian Container Exports | Jan–Sep 2023 to Jan–Sep 2026 | TEUs

Source: DataLiner – explore Datamar's trade data

Among exported goods, food industry residues (51.3%), cotton (25.6%) and pulp (12.2%) posted notable volume gains. Meat products, which accounted for 22.8% of total containerized exports, rose 5.9%. By contrast, shipments of sugar (13%), paper (2.9%), plastics (2.2%) and wood (1.8%) declined.

The September drop in container exports coincided with a steep fall in Brazilian beef shipments. According to the Brazilian Beef Exporters Association (ABIEC), beef export volumes were down 35.1% from September 2025. The association attributed the result mainly to a sharp reduction in sales to China amid safeguard measures in that market.

The beef figures provide context for September's performance but do not, by themselves, explain the decline in container shipments. ABIEC reports beef volumes in metric tons; DataLiner's meat category covers a broader range of products and is measured here in TEUs.

China Buys More Brazilian Cargo as Shipments to the U.S. Fall

China remained the leading destination for Brazil's containerized exports, accounting for 15.1% of shipments and posting 6.5% growth from January through September. Volumes also increased to the Netherlands (17.4%), Colombia (17%), Japan (8.5%), India (8.2%) and Mexico (2%).

The United States ranked second, with a 10.6% share, but shipments fell 11.5% compared with the first nine months of 2025.

The decline came amid additional U.S. tariffs on certain Brazilian products. To support affected exporters, Brazil's government introduced measures including an exceptional extension of deadlines under its drawback suspension regime, subject to the conditions established by the regulations.

The regime suspends certain taxes on inputs used to manufacture goods for export. The deadline extension gives companies whose operations were demonstrably affected by the additional U.S. tariffs more flexibility.

Growth in shipments to other destinations contrasts with the decline in exports to the United States. Country-level totals alone, however, cannot establish whether the same goods were redirected to other markets or how much of the U.S. decline was caused by tariffs.

Argentina Exports More Containers as Imports Fall

Argentina's containerized exports reached 452,964 TEUs from January through September 2026, up 15.5% from 392,250 TEUs in the same period of 2025. Imports fell 8%, from 572,130 to 526,630 TEUs.

Compared with the previous year, Argentina shipped an additional 60,714 TEUs abroad and received 45,500 fewer TEUs.

The direction of these changes also appears in merchandise trade statistics from Argentina's National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INDEC). From January through September, Argentina's exports rose 21.6% in value, while imports declined 2.5%. INDEC's figures cover merchandise trade across all transport modes in dollars, so they are not directly comparable with changes measured in TEUs.

Uruguay Increases Container Exports While Imports Remain Nearly Flat

Uruguay's containerized exports rose 10.8% from January through September 2026 to 136,813 TEUs, up from 123,491 TEUs in the same period of 2025. That was an increase of 13,322 TEUs.

Imports were virtually unchanged at 150,401 TEUs, compared with 150,468 TEUs a year earlier, a decline of just 67 TEUs.

According to Uruguay XXI, the country's total merchandise exports, including free trade zones, reached $10.372 billion from January through September, up 1%. The difference from the 10.8% increase in TEUs reflects the different coverage and units of measurement: one indicator tracks the value of all goods exported, while the other tracks containerized shipments.

Tracking South American Maritime Trade Trends With DataLiner

The January–September results reveal contrasting trends across commodities, countries and sectors. In Brazil, vehicles and auto parts generated more than half the net increase in container imports, while China gained share as a supplier. Export performance varied by commodity and destination, and Argentina and Uruguay followed different patterns of their own.

DataLiner, Datamar's maritime trade intelligence platform, enables users to examine these patterns by commodity, cargo type, country, port of loading and discharge, ocean carrier and companies involved in shipments. Depending on data coverage and available fields, users can also access information identifying the actual cargo owner (Real Cargo Owner), review shipment records and historical series, and compare volumes, rankings and market share.

By combining these data points, exporters, importers, terminals and logistics providers can monitor changes in shipping routes and cargo profiles, examine market participants and identify markets for further commercial research. Historical shipment data should be assessed alongside current freight quotes, service schedules and operating conditions before decisions are made.

Explore DataLiner and request a demonstration to analyze your market's trade flows.