São Paulo – The volume of footwear imported by Brazil increased 16.9% in the first quarter, 7% in March, and nearly doubled — up 90% — over five years. The figures were released on Tuesday (14) by the Brazilian Footwear Industries Association (Abicalçados), based on data from the Foreign Trade Secretariat (Secex) of the Ministry of Development, Industry, Trade and Services (Mdic).
From January to March, Brazil imported 15 million pairs. These imports totaled USD 164.9 million, up 15.9% compared to the first quarter of last year, in line with the increase in import volumes. In March alone, 5.36 million pairs entered Brazil, amounting to USD 55.6 million. In value terms, this represented a 23.8% increase over the same month in 2025.
Both in the quarter and in March, China was Brazil’s largest foreign footwear supplier. In March, Chinese exporters sold 2.95 million pairs to the Brazilian market at an average price of USD 2.29. Vietnam followed with 1.16 million pairs at USD 27.38, followed by Indonesia with 639,200 pairs at an average of USD 18.65, Paraguay with 385,500 pairs at USD 1.10 each, and Cambodia with 62,300 pairs, each sold at USD 21.09.
The rise in imports comes despite subdued domestic footwear consumption, raising concerns for Brazil’s industry, which is facing declining exports. Between January and March, Brazil exported 26.32 million pairs worth USD 210.9 million, down 16.6% in volume and 21.8% in revenue compared to the same period in 2025. In March, exports totaled 9.23 million pairs and USD 75.57 million, with declines of 12% and 21%, respectively.
Read more:
Bloompy shoes head to Algeria, Libya
Translated by AI
