the hole it passes through Alicante’s exportscrushed under the weight of the strong consumption decline It is an experience that its main markets are both in Europe and on the other side of the Atlantic, in the United States. A situation that particularly affects the main product the province sells abroad, shoeAlready one of the few remaining heavy industrial sectors in the region, aluminum.
Alicante companies’ shipments abroad last September decreased for the third consecutive month, and at a slightly higher rate than in August. decreased by 9.7% to 543.1 million euros. This figure brings Alicante’s accumulated exports so far this year to 5 billion 319 million, only 0.57% more than in the same period in 2022; This means economic slowdown Already eaten almost all the progress Thanks to the inertia that continued from last year, this figure was reached in the first quarter of the year.
Undoubtedly, the most worrying situation is due to its weight on the provincial economy. shoewith sales abroad fell 20.7 percent It rose to 88.7 million in September, already showing a 4.2% decline in the year’s cumulative amount; A total of 970 million exports were made, compared to 1,014 exports in the same period of 2022.
President of the Valencian Shoe Entrepreneurs Association (Avecal), Marian Canois aware of the sector’s concern about this evolution and takes responsibility for this issue. “slowdown in consumption” This led to inflation and rate increases across Europe and the United States. Therefore, after a weak spring-summer season, the majority of businesses “conservative” demands According to Cano, we are facing winter and this is now reflected in the decline in shipments.
As if this were not enough, due to this situation and the unfavorable environment, businessmen do not foresee spare orders and new declines are expected in the coming months. So much so that Employers do not ignore the fact that Employment Regulation Files can be seen Especially after the campaign carried out by the Labor Inspectorate, there will be a forced to rehire many laid-off permanent employees on permanent contractsThis leaves little room for factories to adapt without resorting to layoffs.
Some are negotiating with these workers their temporary reinstatement to permanent employee status, a possibility included in the industry agreement, but the reality is that employers fear the Labor Authority will not facilitate this change either.
Aluminum
The same paralysis in household consumption also affects industries: toyWe exported 8% less in September, with a total of 19 million units, whose cumulative value has already decreased by 10.8% in the first nine months of the year. Sale furniture and its status aluminum related industry, HE sees foreign turnover halved The decline in orders – up 26.5 million in September compared to 53.2 the previous year – as a result of reduced activity at factories across the continent was combined with a drop in the price of this metal.
Among those rescued, agricultureat least partially. export fresh fruit It maintains the rate at 46.5 million, which is 0.6% higher. A good start to the lemon campaignAs the president of Asaja Alicante emphasized, José Vicente Andreu; In vegetables, the number reached 21.5 million with an increase of 6.3 percent. However, it should be noted that this figure does not reflect the products grown in the province, but rather the sales made by exporters in the region. vegetables grown elsewhere from the country. But the worst part goes here: agri-food processing industry, whose sales decreased by 21.6% in the monthespecially Lower olive shipments due to insufficient harvest. “Climate change also affects state exports,” says Andreu.
For your part, making It manages to overcome the figures to some extent and, most importantly, it ensures the progress of the sector. machine manufacturers, Those who exported 11% more reached 18.1 million and electrical materialBatteries sold abroad by 40.7 percent increased to 20.7 million.
destinations
In any case, the numbers by destination do not bode well, as a clear downward trend is observed in almost all major markets of Alicante businessmen. Thus, shipments to Europe’s major locomotive fell by more than 18% in September. Germany. Export France It recorded a decline of 14.5%; Sales fell by 7.8 percent United Kingdom; 33%, Holland; and 4.3% to Italy. And the worst part was that the main destination outside the EU was no better either. So Alicante exports United States of America It fell 19.5%, from 40.9 million to 32.9 million in September last year.