Brazil’s footwear exports down more than 10% in 2018
14/01/2019
These figures were compiled and released by national footwear industry body Abicalçados.
After small signs of recovery in October and November, the Brazilian footwear industry ended 2018 on a negative note with exports falling 24.3% in volume and 16.5% in value in December.
In terms of value, the US was the most important export market for Brazilian shoes in 2018. Exports to this country were worth $166.78 million, although this was a decrease of 12.2% compared to the previous year. The volume of exports to the US was down 5% to 10.76 million pairs.
Argentina still leads the way as an export destination in terms of volume. During 2018, it imported 11.8 million pairs of shoes from Brazil, up 2% year-on-year. The value of these exports was down 5.2% to $139.38 million.
Among the reasons Heitor Klein, executive president of Abicalçados, gave for the disappointing export performance in 2018 were “rough currency fluctuations”, which he attributed to political uncertainty in Brazil and rising interest rates in the US. He also mentioned May’s truckers’ strike as a potential cause.
He was more optimistic when looking ahead, however, stating that a more stable environment for exporters should result in increases in 2019. He added that he expects a recovery of the North American market, at least in part due to the ongoing trade dispute between the US and China.
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