Appliance manufacturers expect 20% retracement in sales

São Paulo-Without signaling of improvement of internal economy, manufacturers of white goods appliances (fridge, stove and washer) attempt to scale the tumble in 2016. Industry representatives design retreat of about 20% in sales this year about 2015.
For some categories the estimated decline in sales volume reaches 40%, revealed to the DCI, the President of the National Association of Manufacturers of electrical and electronic products (Down), Ajit Kiçula. The entity has yet to release official projection to 2016.
"The scenario for the sector took a turn for the worse. In January and February I had more hope, but now some segments talk about fall even in comparison to 2014 ", commented. In his review, business people are more careful, as well as consumers. And if by the end of March there is no change, the prospect may worsen.
The giant Whirlpool, owner of the brand Brastemp and Consul, designs 10% retracement in sales in Brazil. The forecast was attributed to the weakening of demand, reflecting the local economic crisis.
"We hope a year flat, without a big dive. But the first quarter must be bad, because the first few months of 2015 were strong, "said the Vice President of institutional relations, communication, sustainability and manufactures Whirlpool Latin America, Armando Valle. He pointed out that it does not see a solution to the problems of the brazilian economy in the short term and there is still a lot of uncertainty about the future of the market.
The company followed the movement of the industry and reduced the shifts in factories and the current activity is in line with the established by the National Confederation of industry (CNI), said the Executive. According to the latest survey of the CNI, the capacity utilisation by the industry was in 62% stable in January compared with December and five percentage points below in relation to January 2015.
Valle cited the output of Mabe in the Brazilian market as one of the factors that may favor the Whirlpool. At the end of last year, Mabe of Brazil filed for reorganization and in early 2016 fired all employees. The Capital Management company, responsible for managing the assets of the company, tries to close a deal with employees who occupy the factories of Mabe a little over a month.
"With the departure of Mabe, the household appliance market follows bad, but who still ends up inheriting any volume of sales. With that, the situation is a little better depending on the company, "said the Chief Executive of Whirlpool.
The President of Eletros evaluations also assessed the output of Mabe in the country as a factor that may favor the manufacturers of white goods. "It may be that a player important leaving the market helps a little bit who is, but that doesn''t mean more sales for a particular company.
Alternatives
The Whirlpool''s Director notes that the company has already made adjustments in capacity and has new products, which can alleviate the situation.
"The consumer, as hard as it is, the situation should not change appliances purchased in recent years for cheaper items. Frost free refrigerators are still a tendency in Brazil and the demand for our beer didn''t fall. This product was released during the World Cup [in 2014] and still doing quite successfully, "he said.
Whirlpool also initiated a series of actions with suppliers and wants to avoid dependence on imported inputs, said the Director of relations with investors of the company. According to Valle, the company has been organizing programs and innovation and business courses for suppliers in a bid to help local businessmen working in a business environment more difficult.
The brazilian manufacturer of Emicol components, for example, has benefited from the replacement of imported inputs movement since last year. With almost 50% of the high dollar against real in 2015, many companies have been looking for suppliers with local production to avoid the impact of the dollar cost.
"The white line segment has undergone a major retraction of the volumes produced in 2015. In some products, such as clothes washers, where we provide many components, the fall was even greater than the industry average, "said the Director of new business of Emicol, Faris Macul Grandson. More than 70% of production of the company is aimed at manufacturers of white goods and the rest meets the demand of the automotive sector, two sectors that accumulate falls in sales, in General.
Grandson tells that the Emicol has developed new products, expanded the portfolio of customers at home and abroad to evade the retraction in the category.
"We work as an alternative to imported components in 2015 and the increase in exports has also contributed to our results", said the Executive. Last year, the company maintained its sales volume and revenues in line with 2014.
The goal of Emicol to 2016 is to increase sales by up to 6% and the turnover in 8%, also in offering more modern components, but with a lower price for the white line. Grandson noted that the manufacturers have sought cheaper alternatives to the composition of household appliances, avoiding to increase the final price of the products.