Brazil Chemical, Energy and Mining Stocks

Brazil, one of the four BRIC countries [Brazil, Russia, India, and China], has one of the fastest growing economies in the world. Brazil, which is the fifth largest country in the world by both population and area, has the eighth highest gross domestic product on a purchasing power parity basis, according to the International Monetary Fund. It is the largest producer of ethanol in the world, which comes from sugarcane. Here are the Brazilian chemical, ethanol, and mining companies which trade in the United States.

Braskem S.A. (BAK) is Brazil’s largest petrochemical company, with a significant portion of its shares owned by Odebrecht and Petrobras, a state owned oil company. The company has the largest research complex for their sector in all of Latin America, which is located in Truinfo, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. The company has shares listed on the Sao Paulo, New York and Madrid stock exchanges. Currently, Braskem has 3,300 employees. The company is headquartered out of Sao Paulo. In addition, the company has offices in Argentina, Bahia, Maranhao, Minas Gerais, Parana, Pernambuco, Santa Catarina, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paolo, the Netherlands, the United States and Venezuela. The stock has a P/E of 18 and a yield of 2%.

Companhia Siderurgica Nacional (SID), also known as CSN, is the second largest steel-maker in Brazil and has its main plant located in the city of Volta Redonda in the state of Rio de Janiero. The company is the largest full-integrated steel producer in Brazil, making it one of the largest crude steel producers in Latin America. Currently, it has a crude steel capacity and rolled product capacity of over five million tons each. 49 percent of the galvanized steel products sold in Brazil are generated by this company. Currently the CEO of the company is Benjamin Steinbruch.
The headquarters for the company is located in Rio De Janeiro, while the company currently has factories based out of the Vale do Paraiba region, the southern Rio de Janeiro state, In addition is iron mines at Congonhas and Arcos, and coal mines at Sideropolis and Santa Catarina. The stock has a P/E of 15 and a yield of 3.7%.

Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (RIO) is a multinational mining corporation and is the second largest mining company in the world and the largest logistics operator in Brazil. In addition to being a world leader in the production of manganese, copper, bauxite, potash, kaolin and aluminum, Vale is also the largest producer in the world of iron ore, pellets and nickel.
While Vale is headquartered in Rio de Janeiro, it has offices on every continent but Antarctica, and 16 Brazilian states. In its history, Vale has participated in mining operations in Finland, Canada, Australia, Mongolia, China, India, Angola, South Africa, Chile and Peru, In addition as many other countries. Other offices for the company are located in Tokyo, Buenos Aires, Seoul, Lima, Toronto, London, Johannesburg, Singapore and Shanghai. Currently, the company has over 100,000 employees. The stock has a P/E of 14 and a yield of 1%.

The largest producer of long steel in the Americas is Gerdau S.A. (GGB) The company produces and sells crude steel related to long rolled products, drawn products and long specialty products. In addition, the company offers billets, rebar, merchant bars, wire rod, drawn products and nails.
Currently, the Gerdau Group is the 14th largest steelmaker in the world, with 272 industrial and commercial facilities, five joint ventures and two associated companies. The company currently has a capacity of 23.2 million metric tons of steel per year. The company currently has 31,563 employees. The company is based out of Porto Alegre, Brazil and has facilities, offices and factories in Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Uruguay, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the United States, Canada, Spain and India. . The stock has a P/E of 12.5 and a yield of 2%.

Petrobras Energia Participaciones (PZE) is a top oil company that uses state-of-the-art technology in the exploration, production, transportation, refining and marketing of oil and gas. Although the company is based in Argentina, it has operations in Brazil, Venezuela, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, Colombia, and Mexico.
Through 50 years of operation, Petrobras has 9,800 wells in operation, 96 production platforms, 1,535,000 barrels of oil per day in production, 44 million cubic meters of gas extracted per day, 16 refineries in Brazil, Bolivia and Argentina, 115 ships, 7,700 gas stations, 15,000 kilometers of pipeline and two fertilizer plants. In addition, the company is a large supporter of environmental programs and is actively involved in over 300 social projects in South America. Currently, the company ranks as the 15th largest oil company in the world. The stock has a P/E of 15.5 and a yield of 1.1%.

Petroleo Brasileiro (PBR), or Petrobras, is a Brazilian oil company which has a significant output of two million barrels of oil per day, which makes it a major distributor of oil products in the world. The company is also a world leader in the development of technology, which can be used for ultra-deep and deep water oil production. The company has business operations in 18 nations in North America, Asia, South America, Europe and Africa.
Over half, 55.7 percent of the company’s shares are owned by the Brazilian government, with other portion being traded on Bovespa and the NYSE. The company is also a very large supporter of arts, culture and the environment in Brazil, including being a main supporter of whale conservation and research through the Brazilian Humpback Whale Institute. The company currently has 50,000 employees. The stock has a P/E of 19 and a yield of 0.4%.

Ultrapar Holdings, Inc. (UGP), through its subsidiaries, distributes liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in Brazil. It distributes LPG primarily to residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the south, southeast, and northeast regions of Brazil. The company also engages in the production and sale of chemicals, such as ethylene oxide, ethylene glycols, ethanolamines, glycol ethers, and methyl-ethyl-ketone, In addition as specialty chemicals used in textiles, foods, cosmetics, detergents, agricultural chemicals, paints, and varnishes industries. In addition, Ultrapar Holdings provides integrated road transport, storage, handling, and logistics planning services for chemicals and fuels in southeast and northeast regions of Brazil. The company was founded in 1937 and is headquartered in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The company currently has 9,500 employees. The stock has a P/E of 33 and a yield of 2.3%.

Author does not own any of the above.

By Fred Fuld at Stockerblog.com