South Korea jumps from 9th to 1st in Brazil laminator imports

In 2024, South Korea was the ninth-ranked supplier of industrial laminators and calenders to Brazil — less than 1% of the market, with FOB of US$ 140,000. In 2025, it ranked first, with a 31.8% share and US$ 11 million in value. That is a 78-fold increase in a single annual cycle.

No other supplier made a comparable move over the same period. That points to something beyond opportunistic spot sales: there is a structured procurement decision behind these numbers.

Who lost ground

Industrial laminators and calenders — machines used in the processing of paper, textiles, rubber and plastic laminates — have a relatively concentrated import market in Brazil. Before 2025, Germany, Italy and China shared most of the volume. South Korea's leap to the top implies that at least one of those incumbents gave up meaningful share through the year.

Supplier switching in this category does not happen automatically. Laminators are capital equipment with long buying cycles, technical qualification processes and demanding after-sales support requirements. A shift of this magnitude in one year suggests the Brazilian buyer negotiated a large-scale order — possibly for an industrial expansion project or a full production-line upgrade at a packaging or paper-processing facility.

Why South Korea, why now

South Korea's machine-building industry has been advancing in precision segments over the past decade. Mid-sized manufacturers have built competitive portfolios in paper and packaging laminators — segments growing in Brazil, anchored by e-commerce expansion and rising demand for sustainable packaging across food and consumer goods supply chains.

Exchange rates also helped. The Korean won faced depreciation pressure against the dollar through 2025, reducing USD acquisition costs for the Brazilian buyer. Combined with export financing conditions that the South Korean government typically provides through KEXIM — the country's official export-import bank — the competitive edge may have been decisive in closing the final negotiation with the Brazilian purchaser.

What changes for the supply chain

For Brazilian industries that operate laminators — papermakers, packaging producers, textile mills and plastic laminate factories — South Korea's emergence as the dominant supplier introduces a new price and lead-time benchmark. This repositioning may pressure other suppliers to revise their terms in the next purchasing cycles.

Parts availability and technical support are the next critical variables to assess. If the Korean manufacturer has a local presence or a certified partner in Brazil, the supply relationship will likely consolidate into long-term contracts. If that structure is absent, the total cost of ownership could erode the initial acquisition advantage — and reopen the door for European suppliers to return in the next cycle.