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It turns out that the largest natural stone exhibition in South America, Vitória Stone Fair 2009, is indeed a barometer of the Brazilian natural stone industry: after years of smooth development, Brazilian producers are now significantly affected by the US kitchen market. The serious decline. The number of exhibitors has decreased from 400 in 2008 to 350. Less than half of the approximately 2,000 visitors to Victoria, Brazil, came from the United States, and less than a third came from Europe.
The US market has eclipsed everything
"The average granite export volume of companies across the country has dropped by about 50%," said Zanideha Association President Alai Mali (who represents about 500 member companies). "Espirito Santo's business even lost 55%. Exports. The proportion of products sold to the US in 2008 was 53%, so the US is our most important buyer, followed by China (8%) and Italy (7%). Considering that 78% of our exports are Raw material slate, the US market has a significant significance for the Brazilian natural stone industry. Brazil's natural stone industry exports a total of 735 million euros, of which 135 million euros are raw stone, 476 million euros is raw stone slab, and 78 million euros is slate."
China’s wild material purchasing power is stronger than that of European countries such as Italy.
In 2008, the development of various markets was uneven: China purchased 43% of Brazil's raw materials for export, and China's total stone imports increased by about 11%. In contrast, Italy's share of raw materials purchased from Brazil was less than 30%. %, a decrease of 17%; Spain's imports have even decreased by 46%. Combining all imported rock varieties and products, Germany took the seventh place at the end of 2008. Among them, slate accounts for the vast majority, raw stone accounts for 0.17%, value is 275,000 euros, raw stone slabs account for 0.23%, and the value is 1 million euros.
Marble sales rose sharply
What is striking at the show is the market trend of limestone and marble. The demand for marble in the domestic market continues to climb. In addition to Egyptian and Turkish producers, there are also many companies from Carrara, including Magma. Some Brazilian users no longer favor the sturdy granite of the colorful, but instead spend a lot of money to buy Italian stone. According to Margaret's Abert Tella, sales of marble tiles and raw slate last year were 1.5 million euros, and sales are expected to double in 2009. Galantes' Manfred Schafer hopes the market will recover from 2010. He did not see the new stone at the show. Now all manufacturers are afraid to carry out new mining, because American buyers do not want to seek new types of stone, and old varieties can not be sold at the right price.
Brass Khalé's Michele Konesi also confirmed that the market's demand for marble is expanding. He said: "Brazil customers buying Carrara's marble is not the first choice, but the second and the second. Three choices. "This is the same for marble in Turkey or Greece. When it comes to the decline in the number of exhibitors, Kainesi believes that there are economic reasons, but the expensive participation costs are also a major obstacle - the booth fee of 170 euros per square meter scares away many potential exhibitors. He saw problems in the quality of some manufacturers' stone: the stone that American consumers love is only the third choice in the eyes of Europeans. Americans like the stone combined with resin and reinforcing plate.
"Can't make mistakes now"
Haiweisi Geer of the ideal stone company also gave up the opportunity for participation because of the overall economic situation. He said: "Now people buy what they need most." The main problem at present is that it is extremely difficult to collect debts. Geer has not seen a market that can replace the United States, because other markets have been covered by cheap goods from China. He has reduced production at the Wedd Candilla quarry, and now only one-third of employees are working. He believes that in the slate trade, customers should be analyzed in detail and only available to reliable users. The US market is mainly due to the long payment period (which often takes 180 days), so it is very difficult to do; this situation may cause economically difficult exporters to go bankrupt.
Taking into account the sharp fall in inventory of North American middlemen, Gerr believes that if there is a signal of economic recovery, the market demand in the United States will grow rapidly. But Geer added: "However, even before the economic recovery, even Brazil's domestic market will be affected by the economic crisis. The main risk factors here are the depreciation of the Brazilian currency, the excessive supply of granite in the domestic market and extremely low profits. The current sales in Brazil are mainly white granite."
Compensation for sales losses
Michele Kramer from the Italian region of Granada found that all producers and middlemen are watching. At present, only those users who are active in the upper echelons of society have the economic power to buy. A North American user also bought ten containers a year ago, but so far the customer has only purchased one container.
"At present, many people have already put aside the project plan for production using their own equipment, because renting related equipment from third parties is quite cheap," Kramer said. At the time of stone mining, Brazilian producers focused on the taste of the US market with little attention to the taste of the Central European market.
In the company of Granado, 30% to 50% of the losses in the US market are compensated by the increasing number of imported marbles to the domestic market. Limestone and marble in Italy or Spain are more popular in Brazil than in granite; lighter or natural stones such as Botticino, Crema, Marfil Travertine are preferred.
The talc produced by the company of Granado in its own quarry is open for export. Kramer said: "Overall, the sales of the company are about 10%. But the price difference between the varieties such as Botticino and granite is 50%, so we must sell twice the marble of the marble. The marble imported from Europe is mainly favored by wealthy customers in Brazil, and only these talents can afford it. Therefore, the impact of relevant factors on the marble market needs to be seen later."
Individual business is booming
Despite the downturn in the overall economic situation, not all exporters are having a hard time: Montenagna supplies mainly foreign stone such as Luise Blue quartzite to the US market. California customers pay 330 euros for a square metre (2 cm thick) of raw stone slabs, and even 460 euros for 2 centimeters of slate. Export manager Gabriel Kova said: market demand is better than supply The amount is almost four times higher.
Under the economic crisis, the Brazilian stone industry is overcast
The US financial crisis has become a major topic