UNIC figures show Q1 leather declines around the world
Figures compiled by the economics team at UNIC, Italy’s national tanning industry body, put some detail on the performance of leather manufacturers around the world in the first quarter of 2020.
UNIC analysts have said tanners in their country have reported a decline of 21% in their production volumes in the first quarter. They went on to say the tanning sector in Italy is likely to end the year with a decline of 30%, which would mean its weakest performance since the 1970s.
Looking further afield, the same team said Spain recorded growth in the first quarter, thanks to two strong first months, although companies began to report “notable difficulties” from the start of March.
The analysts said Portuguese tanners had managed to avoid a stoppage in production, but remained concerned about results for 2020 because their success depends entirely on orders coming from customers in other sectors that have suffered interruptions to production and are unable to give reassurances about demand in the months ahead.
In France, meanwhile, UNIC’s assessment is that the leather sector suffered a decline of between 30% and 50% in the first quarter, with difficulties extending into the second quarter too. For Germany, it has noted that what it calls “finishing plants” are running at 45% of capacity at the moment and that demand is down by around 30%.
Its figures for China show a fall of 15% in the first quarter but it warns that turnover in the Chinese industry could be down by more than this at the end of the year. Finally, in Brazil it says wet-end activity has remained at a high level, but that leather finishing could be down by as much as 50%.
