From the Newsroom*
São Paulo – The shoe industry of Brazil increased by 12.7% the volume of shoe sector exports in the first two months of this year in comparison with the same period in 2007. A total of 39 million pairs of shoes were sold abroad, according to figures supplied by the Brazilian Association of Shoe Manufacturers (Abicalçados).
Export revenues also posted growth. The increase was 6.1% and revenues reached US$ 368.6 million. Shoes with synthetic uppers headed exports in the first two months of the year, with 22.4 million pairs. They generated revenues of US$ 81 million for the national industry and were sold on average for US$ 3.6 per pair.
Exports of footwear with leather uppers, in turn, totalled 13.5 million pairs and generated revenues of US$ 259.9 million. The average price was US$ 19.18 per pair. Exports of shoes with textile uppers totalled two million pairs, and generated US$ 22.2 million, for an average price of US$ 10.93.
"Leather shoes, which have greater added value and employ more labour, are constantly losing space on the market, and this is a great concern for producers of this product," stated the vice president at Abicalçados, Ricardo Wirth, in a press statement disclosed by the organisation.
There has also been an increase in Brazilian imports of shoes. In the first two months of the year, Brazil bought 7.3 million pairs of shoes abroad, for US$ 52.2 million. The increase in imports was 103.2% in physical volume and 84.8% in values.
Among the main Brazilian states that export shoes, Ceará (NE) is in the first position, followed by Rio Grande do Sul. The state of Ceará has increased shoe exports by 36.6% and revenues by 17.6%. The state sold 16.8 million pairs of shoes for US$ 68.2 million.
*Translated by Mark Ament
