São Paulo – Footwear exports from Brazil increased in November for the first time since May. The month saw 10.54 million pairs of shoes shipped abroad, up 6.6% year-on-year. Revenues amounted to USD 84.78 million, up 1.6%. The figures were made public this Thursday (6) by the Brazilian Footwear Industry Association (Abicalçados).
Abicalçados chairman Heitor Klein said the performance reflects sales to South American countries, with the exception of Argentina. “Argentina is going through an internal crisis, with a sharp drop in currency relative to the US dollar, which means imports are more expensive to end buyers. Moreover, the IMF (International Monetary Fund) has instructed the country to preserve its foreign currency reserves, which should mean our sales to that country will keep declining in months to come,” a press release quoted him as saying.
Argentina is the second leading destination for Brazilian footwear, trailing only the United States. France is the third biggest market. The United Arab Emirates rank 19th.
But November numbers did not suffice to change around the bearish year-to-date scenario. From January to November, 100.38 million pairs of shoes got shipped from Brazil, down 8.6% from a year ago. Revenues came out to USD 878.5 million, down 9.8%.
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
