A survey by the National Confederation of Industry (CNI) released today (20) pointed to the high tax burden, insufficient internal demand and the lack or high cost of raw materials as the main concerns of the Brazilian industrial sector.
The information is part of the Industrial Survey survey and was collected from the 3rd to the 13th of January. In total, 1,688 companies were consulted: 694 small, 571 medium and 423 large.
The survey shows that production, industrial employment and the use of installed capacity (UCI) registered a drop from November to December. The production evolution index stood at 42.8 points, a result below the 50-point dividing line between production decline and growth.
“The month of December is marked by a slowdown in industrial production. It should be noted, however, that the result is above the average for the month of December (41.8 points), that is, the drop in production between November and December 2022 was perceived as less strong than in other years” , says the survey.
The same occurred with industrial employment, which also recorded a drop in the survey’s evaluation period. The evolution index of the number of employees was 46.9 points, corresponding to a decrease of 2.1 points from November to December. The result has been below the dividing line since October, indicating that there is a perception of a drop in industrial employment in the last quarter of 2022.
The Use of Installed Capacity (UCI) also decreased in December, compared to November, remaining at 67%. The percentage of December 2022 is lower than that registered in the same month of the previous two years, considered a period of atypical industrial activity.
According to CNI, the behavior of these indices is usual for the period. In relation to inventories, the survey points to a slight decline, but says that they remain above planned. The stock level evolution index was 49.5 points, just below the 50-point dividing line, indicating a small drop in stocks compared to the previous month.
In addition to the main problems listed by entrepreneurs in the quarter ended in December 2022, the survey presents indicators related to the performance of the industry in December 2022 and the expectations of entrepreneurs in January 2023.
In the assessment of the business community, most expectations indexes for January 2023 increased and “optimism remained widespread. Investment intentions remained stable over the period.”
“The investment intention index reached 53.7 points, remaining above the historical average of 51.4 points, which indicates that there is an intention to invest in the industry”, says the survey.
