Footwear exports decline while imports rise in Brazil
The Brazilian sector exported fewer pairs and generated less revenue through August, mainly under pressure from declining sales to the United States and Argentina. In the domestic market, imports grew, with Asian suppliers among the main highlights.
Brazilian footwear exports lost momentum in the January-to-August period. The country shipped 62.45 million pairs, generating revenue of US$ 541.45 million. Compared with the same period in 2025, volume fell 7.5% and revenue fell 16.8% — the worst performance for the period since 2020, according to Abicalçados data based on records from the Secretariat of Foreign Trade (Secex).
The deterioration also appeared in the monthly result. In August, 7.13 million pairs were shipped abroad, generating revenue of US$ 70.8 million. Year-on-year declines reached 6.6% in quantity and 8.1% in value.
Two markets explain an important part of this movement. The United States and Argentina together accounted for a US$ 111 million loss in Brazilian exports compared with the first eight months of 2025.
In the United States, the sector exported 7.38 million pairs between January and August, for US$ 120.5 million. Volume fell 4.1%, while revenue declined 22.8%. In August, the quantity shipped rose 40.5% to 1.13 million pairs, but revenue fell 9.2% to US$ 19.42 million. The average value per pair dropped 35.4% to US$ 17.20, in a movement Abicalçados associated with the smaller share of higher-value footwear, especially leather products.
The decline was more pronounced in Argentina. The market received 4.52 million Brazilian pairs in the first eight months, generating US$ 60.3 million. Year on year, volume fell 51.6% and revenue fell 55.6%. Abicalçados links the performance to lower consumption in the country and the advance of Asian products favored by tariff reductions for goods from outside Mercosur.
Paraguay was the third-largest destination for Brazilian exports in the period, with 5.4 million pairs and revenue of US$ 31 million. Although quantity fell 9.4%, revenue grew 12%. Other Latin American markets also advanced, but have not yet offset the losses in the United States and Argentina. Sales to El Salvador grew 254% in value year to date; in August, shipments to Colombia and Bolivia increased 132.3% and 219.2%, respectively, while revenue from Germany rose 282.7%.
In Rio Grande do Sul, the sector's leading exporting state, cumulative shipments rose 3.2% to approximately 22 million pairs. Revenue, however, fell 14.4% to US$ 269.54 million. In August, the state exported 2.46 million pairs, down 14.7%, and generated US$ 34.95 million, a decline of 16.6%.
At the same time that foreign sales declined, Brazilian footwear imports increased. From January to August, 33 million pairs entered the country, up 9.6%, with spending of US$ 429.7 million — an 11% increase over the same period in 2025.
China, Vietnam, and Indonesia accounted for approximately 77% of imported pairs. China supplied 10.28 million pairs, Vietnam 9.77 million, and Indonesia 5.42 million. Purchases of footwear parts, such as uppers, soles, heels, and insoles, also increased: they totaled US$ 34.47 million, up 16.7% year on year.
The result combines lower export revenue, rising imports, and losses concentrated in markets that are important to Brazil's industry. Abicalçados considers the evolution of sales to the United States and the opening of new destinations to be decisive factors for the sector's performance in the coming months.