The month of November brought good news for shoe exporters and producers in Brazil. According to data prepared by Abicalçados, last month 10.54 million pairs were shipped abroad, generating 84.78 million US dollars, up by 6.6% in volume and by 1.6% in value, when compared to similar month in 2017.

This represents an interruption in a falling trend in place since May. However, it hasn't enough to completely recover the accumulated decline registered in the 11 months of the year, which registered falls of 8.6% in pairs and 9.8% in value, compared to the same period last year: 100.38 million pairs exported with a total value of 878.5 million US dollars compare to 109.86 million pairs and 973.58 million US dollars in similar period in 2017.

Abicalçados Executive President Heitor Klein points out that among the main destinations, the South American countries, with the exception of Argentina, were fundamental for the positive performance in November. Last month, Argentina, representing the second international market for Brazilian footwear, bought 586.88 thousand pairs for which 8 million US dollars were paid, an increase of 17.2% in volume and 20.3% in compared to the same month in 2017. "Argentina is experiencing an internal crisis, with its currency depreciating sharply against the dollar, which makes imports more expensive for the consumer. In addition, there is a determination by the IMF that the country preserve its international reserves, which should further reduce our sales there in the coming months", Mr. Klein states.

Main destination markets

Amongst the main destination markets for Brazilian footwear, the United States reduced the average value of the pair bought, increasing the volume of imported products. In November, the Americans bought 1.27 million pairs for 15 million US dollars, a 2.8% increase in pairs and a 7.8% drop in revenue in relation to the same month last year. The second market in the ranking continued to be the Argentina, where 11.38 million pairs were sent for US 134.13 million US dollars, an increase of 5% in volume and a decrease of 3.4% in US dollars in comparison with the corresponding period of last year. The third destination was France, which imported 6.4 million pairs for 50.46 million US dollars, increasing both volume (23.3%) and revenue (2.3%).