Car sales in Brazil went up 21.6% interannually last month, the best performance since 2014, according to a National Association of Automotive Vehicle Manufacturers (Anfavea) report released this week. The document mentioned 264,949 units sold last month alone, a 12.1% growth from September and also the highest monthly sales volume since December 2014.
While car making in Argentina went down 16.7% year-on-year in January, exports grew by 34.7%, according to a report released Monday in Buenos Aires by the Association of Automotive Manufacturers (Adefa). Domestic vehicle production reached 22,643 units last month during a total of only 11 working days due to the prolonged summer recess. It also represented a 38.8% decline from December's output.
Despite the lack of auto parts and other foreign inputs due to government restrictions aimed at keeping US dollars within the Central Bank's reserves, Argentina's carmaking industry grew 27.8% year-on-year in October, it was reported in Buenos Aires.
Carmakers Fiat had to halt production Wednesday at its plant in the Argentine province of Córdoba due to the lack of imported inputs, the Stellantis group explained.
Vehicle sales slumped the most in Argentina and Brazil of all Latin American countries during January, according to a report with data for ten nations in the region.
Brazil's National Association of Automotive Vehicle Manufacturers, ANFAVEA said that the 2021 market had a significant improvement to the critical production level of 2020, but was still short of the potential of the industry both in domestic and foreign markets. Nevertheless, Brazilian exports of automobiles reach US$ 7,6 billion.
The Chinese carmaking company Lifan has announced it would halt all of its operations in Uruguay and leave the country after agreeing to pay overdue wages to some 60 workers who have been laid off and alre already on unemployment insurance.
An increase of up to 65% in the sales of used cars was recorded this past month of March in Argentina, the Chamber of Automotive Commerce (CCA) reported.
Carmaker Ford said on Monday losses exacerbated by the coronavirus epidemic and fiscal uncertainties would see it close its three factories in Brazil, where it has operated for a century, terminating some 5,000 jobs.
Brazilian car manufacturing started to recover during the first month of the second half of the year. Numbers released by the National Association of Automotive Vehicle Manufacturers (Anfavea), point out that in July, production reached 170,300 units, an increase of 73% over June, but still 36.2% lower than the same month last year. Despite the increase, it was still the worse July since 2003.