São Paulo – Randon S.A Implementos e Participações, which controls nine companies in the area of vehicles and implements, auto parts and financial services, expanded exports by 54.5% in the first half of this year over the same period in 2009. According to the export coordinator at the company, Caio Rebello, the growth, in the area of road equipment, was due to a rebound of the demand that had been repressed in 2009. Company revenues on the foreign market rose from US$ 159.7 million in the first six months of last year to US$ 202 million in the same period this year.
According to Rebello, the main market for Randon abroad, in road implements, was Chile and the country, according to him, felt the effects of the crisis due to its highly open economy. Currently the countries of Latin America answer to 60% of exports of Randon Implementos, whereas Africa and the Middle East represent around 40%. In the period of the crisis, explained the coordinator, these percentages were inverted. Now, with the return of Latin-American economies, the balance has returned to normality.
There are perspectives, however, for greater participation of Africa and the Middle East in Randon foreign sales due to investment in the region. The Brazilian company should start assembling its semi-trailers in Egypt in the coming month. In April this year, Randon established a joint venture with Egypt Power to trade and assemble products in Cairo. According to Rebello, the structuring of the assembly line, to be in an Egypt Power unit, started in late July and should be ready later this month, when semi-trailers will start being assembled.
Randon is going to send the products to Egypt in the CKD (completely knocked down) format. According to the export coordinator, there are already 16 CKDs in the port of Alexandria waiting to be taken to the assembly line. Four assembled semi-trailers are also currently on the way to Egypt, to serve as models for assembly. A Randon team is already operating in the country. The forecast is for assembly of 500 units a year, initially, rising to 1,000 units a year in five years. In Egypt, for the time being, the models to be assembled will be the platform-style semi-trailers. The idea, however, is that assembly be expanded to all models.
Rebello recalls that in Africa the company already has assembly lines in Kenya and Algeria. Currently, in Kenya and Algeria, Randon already assembles platform, dump-line and tank semi-trailers. The platform includes a chassis and a flat base, whereas the dump line includes a cargo compartment and the tanker version includes the chassis and a tank.
Randon has also revised its export forecasts up for the year. In early 2010, the group’s forecast was to have revenues of US$ 190 million with the foreign market, a figure raised to US$ 220 million this week. The expansion of the market after the crisis was mostly responsible for the revision. The company also had good performance on the domestic market. Sales by the company in Brazil totalled 2.3 billion Brazilian reals (US$ 1.3 billion) in the first half, against 1.5 billion reals (US$ 850 million) in the same period last year, growth of 51%. Gross revenues rose from 1.7 billion reals (US$ 964 million) to 2.5 billion reals (US$ 1.4 billion), growth of 48.7%.
*Translated by Mark Ament
