In 2012, Portugal exported 71 million pairs of shoes. The sector broke the 1.6 billion-euro barrier for the first time. Growth has with 4.5% compared to the previous year. 

2012 was a year of international assertion for the Portuguese footwear industry. With Europe experiencing a modest economic performance, the 2.7% growth of Portuguese footwear exports to the Old Continent deserves to be highlighted. Sales to France and Germany, the two main destination markets for Portuguese exports, grew to 4.8% (and a total of 424 million euros) and 3.2% (295 million euros) respectively. Conversely, it is important to note the decrease of exports to the Netherlands (7% less, to 201 million euros), Spain (7.2%, to 162 million euros) and the United Kingdom (1.7%, to 124 million euros). 

The investment made by Portuguese companies in markets with a high growth potential is starting to show results. Thus, non-EU markets in 2012 were the main drivers of growth for Portuguese footwear, registering an increase of 33%. The highlights were Russia (42% growth to 23 million euros), the USA (50% to 21 million euros) and Japan (111% to 13 million euros). On the negative side were Angola (6% decrease to 15 million euros) and Canada (1% to 11 million euros).

In 2012, footwear reinforced its status as the product that made the most positive contribution to the Portuguese balance of trade. In fact, Portugal imported 49 million pairs of shoes, worth 416 million euros (21% less). With all things taken into account, the footwear industry registered a trade surplus of approximately 1.2 billion euros. 

In the first quarter of 2013, Portuguese Shoes exports increased 6%.