In March, in line with recent months, automobile exports continued to be hard hit by the crisis in Argentina, with foreign vehicle sales falling sharply by 42.2% compared to the same month 2018.

In the accumulated of the year, the external shipments embody a contraction of 42%. In relation to February, the retraction was of 3.7%. The data were released today (4) by the National Association of Manufacturers of Automotive Vehicles (Anfavez).

Anfavea president Antonio Carlos Botelho Megale said: “We are going to have a first semester absolutely compromised, but we expect it to start to improve [later].”

Argentina continues to lead the ranking of the main importers of Brazilian vehicles, accounting for 60% of national exports. But other countries have stood out as important buyers of domestic automobiles, as in Mexico, which accounted for 13% of Brazilian sales. Likewise, Colombia grew from 3% last year to 10% this year.

Falling production

The production of vehicles assembled in the country was 240,546 units in March, down 10% compared to the same month of the previous year, as released today (4) by the National Association of Manufacturers of Automotive Vehicles (Anfavea). In relation to February, there was a reduction of 6.4%.

According to the president of Anfavea, three factors influenced the negative result in production: the strike of the workers, the flood in the Mercedes-Benz factory and the reduction of exports. In addition, March also had a lesser working day due to Carnival.

Antonio Megale defended the importance of maintaining good vehicle production rates, responsible for the generation of jobs and income. “Central Bank report for the 2017 and 2018 biennium reveals that automakers are responsible for a third of Brazil’s industrial growth, a quarter of the total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth, which shows the sector’s relevance. We want production investments to stay in Brazil. “

Licensing

New car licensing increased 0.9% in March compared to March 2018. Compared to February, the increase was 5.3%. In the accumulated since the beginning of the year, compared to the same period in 2018, there was an increase of 11.4%. The daily average of 11,000 units was the highest since 2014 for a month in March.

Agricultural machinery

The marketing of agricultural machinery showed an optimistic result, with a 7% increase in March, compared to the same month in 2018. In relation to February, there was an increase of 31.6%. In the accumulated, was registered a 23.5% increase. “The harvest is very good, it will be the second best harvest in history. We have the entire soybean crop marketed at a very good price with China, the industry is capitalized, with a high level of confidence, “Megale said.

Source: Agência Brasil / Comex do Brasil