São Paulo – Brazilian auto industry export revenue increased by 47.9% in January to USD 809.8 million, the National Motor Vehicle Distributors Association (Anfavea) reported this Monday (6). In January last year, the industry had grossed USD 547.6 million with exports.
Export volume saw an even sharper increase, by 56% year-on-year to 37,200 vehicles. “This was our best January since 2008 when it comes to exports, leading us to believe that we will see a good year in this respect,” Anfavea chairman Antonio Megale told Agência Brasil.
In January from December, however, numbers went down, by 13.2% for revenue and 40.8% for shipped amount. This is in line with forecasts, as the industry is expecting a 7% increase in exports in 2017, with revenue reaching USD 11.7 billion.
Foreign demand fueled production: in January, 174,100 units were made, including automobiles, light commercial vehicles, trucks and buses, up 17.1% from January of last year. In January from December, however, production was down 12.9%.
Conversely, domestic sales slumped by 5% to 147,200 units sold year-on-year, and 28% month-on-month.
Despite the numbers, Megale would not revise the industry’s forecasts made public early last month: “We are still working with the expectation of a 4% increase in sales of new vehicles, a 7.2% increase in exports, and an 11.9% increase in production,” he told Agência Brasil.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
