Both EU27 exports and imports to Brazil increased steadily between 2003 and 2008, fell in 2009, and then recovered to reach peak levels in 2011. EU27 exports to Brazil amounted to 35.7 billion euro and imports to 38.9 bn in 2011. The EU27 registered a continuous deficit in trade in goods with Brazil up to 2011, reaching a peak of 11.5 bn in 2007, then falling progressively to 3.2 bn in 2011.

The first nine months of 2012 showed a slightly different picture, with EU27 exports to Brazil growing from 26.2 bn euro in the first nine months of 2011 to 29.6 bn in the same period of 2012, while over the same period imports fell from 29.9 bn to 28.5 bn. As a result, the EU27 deficit in trade of goods with Brazil of 3.7 bn in the first nine months of 2011 turned into a surplus of 1.0 bn in the same period of 2012. Brazil accounted for just over 2% of the EU27's international trade in goods, and was the EU27's eighth most important trading partner in the first nine months of 2012.

On the occasion of the sixth European Union - Brazil summit, which will take place on 24 January 2013 in Brasilia, Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, issues data on trade and investments between
Brazil and the EU.

Germany, France and Italy registered the largest trade surpluses with Brazil

Among the EU27 Member States, Germany (8.9 bn euro or 30% of EU exports of goods) was by far the largest exporter to Brazil in the first nine months of 2012, followed by France (3.8 bn or 13%), Italy (3.6 bn or 12%), the Netherlands and the United Kingdom (both 2.3 bn or 8%). The Netherlands (6.3 bn or 22% of EU imports) was the largest importer, followed by Germany (5.3 bn or 18%), France (2.8 bn or 10%), Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom (all 2.7 bn or 9%).

The largest surpluses in trade with Brazil in the first nine months of 2012 were observed in Germany (+3.6 bn euro), France (+1.0 bn) and Italy (+0.9 bn), and the largest deficits in the Netherlands (-4.1 bn), Portugal (-0.7 bn) and Spain (-0.6 bn). Over 85% of EU27 exports to Brazil in the first nine months of 2012 were manufactured goods, while for imports raw materials accounted for just over a third of the total and food & drink for nearly 30%.