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Metallurgical production fell 10.2% in August and industrialists expect that the recovery will be slow - Infobae
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La producción metalúrgica cayó 10,2% en agosto y los industriales prevén que la recuperación será lenta
Se trata del peor registro interanual desde la pandemia, de acuerdo con el informe mensual de Adimra. El dato positivo es que la actividad se mantuvo estable respecto de julio de este año. Cómo incide cada sector
www.infobae.com
September 23, 2024
This is the worst year-on-year record since the pandemic, according to Adimra's monthly report. The positive data is that activity remained stable compared to July of this year. How each sector affects
Metallurgical production has accumulated a decline of 15.1% so far this year, compared to the same period in 2023
The metallurgical industry experienced a significant contraction in August, with a year-on-year drop of 10.2%, the worst monthly record since the end of the pandemic. This decline deepens an accumulated negative trend, with a drop of 15.1% so far this year, compared to the same months of 2023. Compared to December of last year, the decrease in production reaches 7.7 percent. The optimistic data is that despite these figures, the sector's production showed a stable trend in August, with no significant variations compared to July.
According to the report of the Economic Studies Department of the Association of Metallurgical Industrialists of Argentina ( Adimra ), the utilization of the installed capacity of the sector stood at 48%. This level reflects a decrease of 7.8 percentage points compared to the same month of the previous year and 10.5% compared to the average for 2023.
“Metal activity remains at levels below the historical average, with a trend of ups and downs that generates uncertainty. We cannot yet speak of a rebound, but we are monitoring the situation closely to assess the outlook, aware that the road to recovery could be slow and challenging,” said Elio Del Re , president of the entity.
Performance of subsectors
The report highlights that the decline affected most of the subsectors that make up the metallurgical industry, with the exception of Bodyworks and Trailers, which registered a year-on-year growth of 4.2%. The decreases in other activities ranged between 4% and 15%, with the worst performances in companies supplying the construction, final consumption and automotive value chains.
According to the Adimra report, the most affected subsectors include Foundry (-15.5%), Auto Parts (-13.8%) and Electrical Equipment (-13.1%).
The oil, gas and mining sectors, while still showing a relatively positive performance, failed to grow compared to the previous year. Among the most affected subsectors, the most notable were Foundry (-15.5%), Auto Parts (-13.8%) and Electrical Equipment (-13.1%).
Adimra's analysis also highlights widespread year-on-year declines in the country's main metallurgical provinces, although with a slowdown in relation to previous months. Santa Fe, for example, showed a contraction of 11.1% despite the growth in agricultural machinery, which had a positive impact on the provincial average. In turn, Córdoba registered a fall of 13.1%, exceeding the national average.
Mendoza (-7.8%), Entre Ríos (-5.1%) and Buenos Aires (-9.2%) also experienced year-on-year reductions, although of a smaller magnitude and with slight slowdowns compared to previous months.
Impact on employment
Employment in the metallurgical sector also fell by 2.5% year-on-year, and compared to July 2024, the decrease was 0.1%. These figures reflect the impact of the sharp contractions in the sector's activity in recent months .In terms of foreign trade , metallurgical sector exports reached USD 475 million in August, representing an increase of 12.7% compared to the same month of the previous year. Meanwhile, imports registered a significant drop of 40.2%, totaling USD 1,822 million. So far in 2024, more than USD 3.1 billion worth of metallurgical products have been exported, while imports exceed USD 13 billion.
The combination of low utilization of installed capacity, contraction in employment and widespread declines in most subsectors poses a challenging outlook for the metallurgical industry in the short and medium term. Although some sectors, such as the Body and Trailer sector, have shown signs of recovery, most companies in the sector continue to face difficulties in sustaining their production and competitiveness in a context of high inflation, high costs and weak domestic demand. The challenge for the coming months will be to find a balance that allows activity to improve and growth to resume, while closely monitoring the macroeconomic variables that affect the industry.
