Exports of car components exceeded 1 billion euros for the second month running in June this year, up 20.1 per cent on the same month in 2022. These exports are one of the driving forces behind Portugal's economic growth and continuously show a higher rate of growth than national exports of goods, which fell by 3.4 per cent in the same period.
Comparing the figures for exports of automotive components in the second quarter of 2023 with the same period in 2022, there is an increase of 21.9 per cent, to around 3150 million euros. Thus, in the year to June, exports of automotive components totalled around 6.400 million euros, which translates into an increase of 21.2 per cent compared to the first half of 2022.
In 2023, 70 per cent of Portuguese exports of automotive components still belong to five main countries. Spain continues to be the main customer for components manufactured in Portugal, with sales of 1,814 million euros. This is followed by Germany with 1.410 million euros, France in third place with 701 million euros, Slovakia in fourth place with 278 million euros and the United Kingdom occupies the fifth place with 250 million euros, replacing the Unites States of America.
Exports from all these countries increased compared to the previous year. Exports to Spain increased by 21.3 per cent compared to 2022, Germany showed growth of 28.2 per cent and exports to France, the third largest client country, grew by 22.1 per cent and, finally, Slovakia saw an increase of 21.3 per cent compared to 2022.
The car components exports to Portugal’s main client countries are growing more than car production in said countries, representing an increase of market share. During the period from January to June this year, production in Spain saw growth of 16.1 per cent, while exports grew by 21.3 per cent, while in Germany, figures show that production reached 26.7 per cent, while exports exceeded this with 28.2 per cent.
Facing these results, the automotive components industry has proved to be resilient and competitive considering challenges such as the rising costs of inflation, transport, energy and raw materials.