Brazilian automotive industry slightly recovers in 2021

The National Association of Automotive Vehicle Manufacturers (ANFAVEA) released the end of 2021 figures showing a slight improvement compared to 2020 but still below the potential of the Brazilian automotive industry considering domestic and foreign demand.

“The global semiconductor crisis caused several factories to shut down throughout the year due to the lack of electronic components, leading to an estimated loss of 300,000 vehicles. As for 2022, restrictions on supply due to lack of components are still expected though at a lesser degree than in 2021, indicating another step towards recovery,” said ANFAVEA’s president Luiz Carlos Moraes.

Output

December was the best month regarding output, with 210,900 vehicles produced. As a result, the year ended with 2,248.3 thousand units produced, an increase of 11.6% over 2020.

Brazil has reclaimed the eighth position in the global producer ranking, which it had lost to Spain the previous year. In 2022, an increase of 9.4 percent is expected, with 2.46 million units produced.

Domestic Market

According to tradition, the last month was also the one with the highest sales volume, with 207,100 licensed units. Even so, it was the worst December in five years. The accumulated result reached 2.12 million units, just 3% above 2020, which kept Brazil in seventh place in the global ranking, by a few units behind France.

For this year, ANFAVEA projects sales of 2.3 million vehicles, an increase of 8.5% over 2021.

Exports

The rapid recovery in markets such as Chile, Colombia, Peru, and Uruguay helped boost Brazilian vehicle exports, despite trade restrictions imposed by the Argentine government. As a result, the 376,400 units exported represented a growth of 16% over the previous year.

Argentina represented less than half of all national shipments (34% of the total) for the first time. However, in terms of value, exports increased by 37.8%, owing to a more significant proportion of vehicles with higher added value, such as trucks and SUVs. For 2022, the expectation is to export 390 thousand units, an increase of 3.6% over the previous year.

Forecasts for the Brazilian automotive industry

At the first press conference of the year, the President of ANFAVEA adopted a tone of moderate optimism. “Despite the economic turmoil and election year, we anticipate a recovery in all industry indicators, which could be even better if there was a more favorable business environment and alongside the tax restructuring on industrialized products,” concluded Moraes.

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