MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

In April Mexico and Brazil produced 5,569 cars instead of half a million

In normal times, Mexico and Brazil produce over half a million cars a month combined

Auto production in Mexico and Brazil, Latin America's top producers, plunged by an unprecedented 99% in April as a result of the coronavirus crisis, with the two countries building a total of just 5,569 vehicles.

In normal times, Mexico and Brazil produce over half a million cars a month combined. The industry accounts for hundreds of thousands of jobs and several percentage points of their respective countries' gross domestic products.

“The situation is difficult and dramatic,” Luiz Carlos Moraes, president of Brazil's automakers association, told reporters.

The statements on production, made on Friday by Mexico's Inegi statistics association and Brazil's Anfavea automakers association, are the first available window into the sheer extent of the crisis for automakers in Latin America.

The coronavirus pandemic is putting jobs in peril and raising questions about the sustainability of the industry's international supply chains, much of which go back to China. The poor results may also be used by auto executives to obtain government aid.

Both countries have so far avoided layoffs but much hinges on when production can restart and whether there will be any demand for cars once that happens. Mexico could tentatively restart production on May 18, while Brazil's top automakers are eyeing a June restart.

Brazil is more focused on its domestic market but is a significant exporter to Argentina. Exports fell by 77%, Anfavea said, to 7,200 units. Sales overall plummeted by two-thirds in Brazil to 55,700 units.