With specialized, high-quality and low-cost labor, Latin American countries have begun to gain ground in the export of speakers, both to other countries in the region and to European countries.
By Richard Santa S.
Although in terms of technology the countries of Latin America have played a role of importers of Asian companies, which are the ones that have led the manufacture of these products, today the former have begun to gain ground.
This situation is reflected in the trade of speakers and amplifiers, when comparing the reports of the statistical data portal Datamyne.com for Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico in the periods 2009, 2010 and the first five months of 2011.
While Brazil and Mexico export these products, mostly to Asian countries, Colombia and Argentina do so more to countries in the region such as Costa Rica, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay and Brazil.
On the other hand, in terms of imports, the four countries analyzed make purchases of speakers and amplifiers in a large percentage from Asian countries such as China, Malaysia, Taiwan and Hong Kong, and in another percentage from the United States.
Sustained growth
Mexico and Brazil are two of the South American countries that in recent decades have stood out for their industrial development and economic growth, they are also the ones that export the most speakers and amplifiers.
Of the four countries analyzed, Mexico is the one that leads exports in number of units with respect to the others. In 2009 it sold abroad about 3.29 million units, equivalent to US$125,347,304.
For 2010 the number of units rose to 4.55 million, worth US$185,111,924 and in the first four months of 2011, the period between January and April, it had already exported 1.7 million units worth US$71,342,283.
Its main market is the United States, a country to which it sends a little more than 80% of the speakers and amplifiers. It is followed by Germany, a country that has shown growth in recent years: in 2009 it was 5.32%, in 2010 it rose to 8.64% and in the first four months of 2011 it was 12%.
The annual units that Brazil exports, although they may be few, have had a significant increase in recent years and has as its main partners the countries of America.
In 2009 it exported 1,919 speakers and amplifiers, which cost US$739,798 and as main partners to Mexico, with 33.92%, the United States with 9.24% and Colombia 7.25%. The rest is spread over a large number of countries with very small percentages.
In 2010 the behavior varied in terms of destination countries. The total number of units exported rose to 3,202, at a cost of US$958,124. The main destination was the United States with 19.46%, Mexico fell to 18.05% and Colombia rose to 12.46%.
During January and May 2011, the trend continues. Brazil has exported 1,939 units for US$715,557. The United States received 26% of the total, Colombia 13.67% and Mexico 5.16%.
Colombia and Argentina are two countries that have also seen their small export market for speakers and amplifiers grow. The first went from 9 units in 2009 to 339 in 2010, while the second went from 42 in 2009 to 50 in 2010.
Industry Opinion
The development and creation of technology products always seeks qualified and economical labor, characteristics provided by Latin countries. This would be one of the explanations for the growth of the speaker market in the countries of the region, according to Nelson Canter, deputy manager of the company Soundesign Ltda.
He indicated that "It is a long process that has been brewing and in the specific case of Colombia it is a great achievement that this happens. This industry has gained great strength in Latin America, and speaker manufacturers in this region are gaining market share in the world with products as high quality as traditional manufacturers."
Another factor that has allowed the increase in exports of sound equipment by Latin American countries are free trade agreements.
"It is clear that without this type of incentive it is difficult to enter markets as competitive as European or Asian. Thanks to these treaties, there is a reduction in the taxes to be paid and thus be able to have access to more and better products on the market," said Nelson Canter.
Shopping, in Asia
With the exception of Mexico, which has as its main partner for the purchase of speakers and amplifiers from the United States, imports from the countries analyzed come from Asian countries, mostly from China.
There were 4.1 million units that had a value of US$121,503,341, which Mexico bought during 2009. For 2010 these figures had a significant increase in units, which reached 226,042,872 and costing US $ 162,605,823.
As mentioned, the United States is the main seller of speakers and amplifiers for Mexico with 55.76% of the total market in 2009 and with a similar percentage for the following year. The other countries with significant percentages during 2009 are China with 18.39% and Thailand with 7.1%.
In the case of Brazil, imports decreased in quantity but increased in the value paid. While in 2009 there were 1.81 million units, which cost US $ 6,967,505, for 2010 the units were 1.24 million with a payment of US $ 8,532,885.
The countries from which Brazil bought in 2009 were China, with 95.69%, Hong Kong with 2.3% and Taiwan with 0.66%. For the following year, purchases from China fell to 88.81% of the total, hong Kong 6.8% and Taiwan 1.01%.
In the first five months of this year, Brazil has paid US$4,256,346 for 331,351 units of speakers and amplifiers. 90.92% of them came from China, 2.48% from Taiwan and 2.25% from Hong Kong.
Market with potential
Compared to Brazil and Mexico, the markets of Argentina and Colombia are very small, but they are a great growth opportunity for the AV industry.
For Colombia, its main supplier of amplifiers and speakers is China. Of the 37,212 units for which it paid US$1,806,785.72 in 2009, 78.21% were from China, 5.72% from Taiwan and 4.98% from Hong Kong.
In 2010, units increased to 57,582 with a value of US$2,294,746. Of these, 88.95% were from China, which increased its share of the Colombian market by 10%, with Taiwan being the most affected, losing this market, and Hong Kong, which fell to 2.32%.
And during the first four months of this year, Colombia's speaker imports reached 15,484 units with a value of US$726,938, continuing the trend of trade relationship with Asian countries seen in previous years.
Argentina also has a close relationship with China. The percentage that the latter sells him in terms of speakers and amplifiers in the last three years exceeds 95%.
In 2009, Argentines bought 165,654 speakers for $4,838,284. For 2010 they decreased in units but increased in price, they were 126,250 units for US $ 5,015,232. In the first five months of this year it has imported 59,242 units for US$2,007,684.
Nelson Canter explained that the industry expects that in the coming years a consolidated and strong market will be achieved to export more and more products, supported by treaties and the change in tax legislation.
Finally, he said that "In a market where some products of Asian origin are no longer considered as an option, Latin America in general must take advantage and launch products that have been in development for long years, and that allow access to the world market with quality and price."
