São Paulo – Footwear exports from Brazil went up 57% in volume to 13 million pairs in March year on year, the Brazilian Footwear Industry Association (Abicalçados) reported on Monday (11). Revenue was up 7% year on year, to USD 111.6 million. The first quarter saw a 27% increase in shipped pairs and 66% increase in volume, to 40.74 million pairs and USD 320.65 million, respectively.
Demand from the United States for the Brazilian footwear has increased. “We’re seeing a relevant demand from major US players that are seeking to substitute Chinese imports due to high shipping costs and to avoid the [7.5%] surcharge on the Asian footwear,” Abicalçados executive president Harold Ferreira was quoted as saying in a statement. A good performance was also posted in sales to Latin American neighbors, which report concerns regarding shipping costs from Asia.
The US was the top destination of the footwear from Brazil in Q1, at 6 million pairs purchased for USD 88.7 million. This is up 83.3% in shipped volume and 120% in revenue. The second leading destination was Argentina, followed by France, Chile and Peru. The Arab countries were not among the 20 leading buyers of footwear in the period.
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
