Surge in exports to Brazil and Argentina in 2023 : Is South America a new Eldorado for SA’s automotive leather industry?

Pretoria, Gauteng, SA – The 2024 edition of the annual Automotive Trade Manual, which provides detailed statistics on the export and import of motor vehicles and their components, shows an ongoing decline for the stitched leather seats and cut components sector in traditional markets in Europe, which remains overall the biggest market for SA’s automotive industry.

Between 2019 and 2023, exports of stitched leather seats and cut components to the EU dropped from R160 million to R20 million. Also, exports of the same products to North America dropped from R13 million to R2 million.

However, exports to South America grew from R1 million to R153 million, and exports to Africa grew from R14 million to R38 million.

The export of seats, which is much smaller, has grown to the EU and Africa, has shrunk to North America, is too small to register in South America, but is measured in exports to Australia.

The 2024 manual, edited by Dr Norman Lamprecht, Chief Trade and Research Officer, The Automotive Business Council (NAAMSA), was done under the auspices of NAAMSA. Previously it was done by the Automotive Industry Export Council.

Asked to comment on the figures, he said: “The stats aren’t linked to companies due to competition law compliance, but the trend in stitched leather seats and parts has been downward for many years. Germany in particular was the major export market in the past but is now probably sourcing from eastern European countries.

“It seems that there is now new business from South America (Brazil and Argentina) which is good news. It is not necessarily new OEMs but new sourcing from SA for these products as this was once our industry’s top component export category and the quality and pricing probably still are competitive.

Automotive component suppliers have endured a state of disarray over the past 3 years, all while maintaining their businesses, meeting customer demand, and finding opportunities to grow. The biggest challenge continuing to face global supply chains is instability. Disruptions have led to delays in the delivery of critical components such as microchips, price peaks due to high demand and low supply, labour costs and productivity, fluctuating volume demand from OEMs and new technology skills requirements. For suppliers, industry transformation and economic and geopolitical uncertainties are requiring them to adopt new strategies and response to adapt to this rapidly changing marketplace. To mitigate these risks and ensure the smoothest transition possible, companies must increasingly focus on diversifying their supply chains, investing in their people, and adopting new technologies such as artificial intelligence, data analytics and automation. Having necessary tools and strategies to support any operation situation is key to staying afloat in the market.

Stability concerns are expected to persist in 2024 in all areas of the automotive industry. For automotive component suppliers, more disruption and fundamental changes are on the horizon, as they need to realign their business models with new sector realities, such as the transitioning toward an electric mobility future.