Carriers say pass-through of high diesel to freight is inevitable

Cargo transport companies say that the pass-through of the high price of diesel announced this Thursday (10) by Petrobras is inevitable. The move should pressure the prices of all products moved by trucks in the country.

According to NT&C Logística (National Association of Cargo Transport and Logistics) the adjustment creates “a critical situation for the carrier, which is still negotiating with its customers the transfer of the almost 50% increase that took place in 2021”.

“Unfortunately, who will pay this bill is the consumer. We will have to pass it on to industry, to commerce”, says the president of Fetranscarga, federation that represents transporters in Rio de Janeiro, Eduardo Rebuzzi.

The sector argues that diesel oil represents, on average, 35% of costs and suggests that carriers include in old contracts triggers to review the value of freight in the event of a rise in the price of fuel.

NT&C Logística says that the sector had already noticed the need to recompose the price of freight due to recent increases in transport inputs, at rates that vary from 18.58% in fractional load and 27.65% in full load.

“It’s not just the fuel. You’ll see the price of the tire, the suspension”, says Carlos Panzan, president of Fetcesp, which represents transport companies in São Paulo.

With the 24.9% readjustment in the price of diesel, which represents an increase of 8.75% in the cost of the sector, the lag in freight would rise to almost 29% in the fractional load and almost 39% in the full load.

Shortly after Petrobras’ announcement on the fuel price, the various Brazilian transport federations called an emergency meeting to discuss the issue.

In the late afternoon, a communiqué was sent to associations representing customers. This Thursday’s diesel readjustment, says the text, is an emergency and must be passed on regardless of the negotiations on the past lag.

Unlike self-employed truckers, hauliers avoid criticism of the government. In 2018, the sector was identified as the main driver of the strike that paralyzed the country for two weeks in protest against high fuel prices.

“It was believed that, with the forecast of the end of the pandemic, prices would become more stable, but the war between Russia and Ukraine has led to an unprecedented rise in the price of a barrel of oil, with serious repercussions on the price of diesel”, stated NT&C in the text released this Thursday.

Rebuzzi stressed that the ICMS is a factor of pressure on prices and defended the change in tax collection approved this Thursday by the Senate, with support from the federal government. “We know that, every time diesel increases, the states collect more.”

Panzan also defended the changes in ICMS and says that the sector is also in favor of a cushion to cushion fuel prices, such as the stabilization fund also approved by the Senate.