By Lise Alves, Senior Contributing Reporter
SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL – New automobile sales in Brazil rose by 23.14 percent in January 2018, in comparison to the same period last year, according to the latest data by FENABRAVE (National Federation of Automotive Distributors).
For the entity, the sector in 2018 is expected to resume the growth rhythm of the previous period before the economic crisis.
“The renewed expectations due to the improvement of the economic indexes reflect directly on consumer confidence and favor the vehicle market,” Fenabrave’s president, Alarico Assumpção told government news agency, Agencia Brasil.
Data also shows positive results in other vehicle segments. The truck segment, for example, registered a 56.26 percent expansion in January 2018, with the sale of 4,6 thousand units. Bus sales increased 57.71 percent during the month in question, with 1.1 thousand units sold.
Forecasts by another national association in the automotive industry, the National Association of Manufacturers of Automotive Vehicles (Anfavea) are also positive. Anfavea calls for an increase of 11.7 percent in licensing, 13.2 percent in production and 5 percent in exports this year.
Exports last year registered record breaking numbers, and was the year Brazil most exported in history, according to the entity.
After registering three consecutive negative years, the Brazilian industrial production closed last year with an accumulated growth of 2.5 percent compared to 2016, mainly thanks to the automotive sector, say analysts.
“Almost all sectors grew (in 2017), but the automotive sector, especially small vehicle manufacturing, was the segment which most influenced the growth. Much of this is due to an improvement in the level of inventories and an increase in exports,” IBGE (Brazilian Statistics Bureau) research manager, Andre Macedo, told journalists last week.