French industry association Le Conseil National du Cuir has published a report about the performance of the leather sector there, focusing on the first eight months of 2022, writes Leatherbiz.

It said all segments had reported positive figures for exports over the eight-month period.

Overall, French leather exports increased by 21% year on year in the period from January to August 2022.

Within this, there was an 8% increase in the value of shipments of raw hides and skins. The corresponding figure for finished leather was an increase of 19%, while for footwear the increase was of 23%.

There was growth of 21% for exports of leathergoods and of 13% for gloves.

While the report did not give figures for the amount of money this growth represents, it did give a figure for overall exports for the French leather in 2021. The full-year figure across all segments for 2021 was €14.7 billion.

If the rate of growth of the first eight months were to continue for the remainder of 2022, the French industry would be on course for full-year export figures of €17.75 billion.

There were also increases in French manufacturers’ and brands’ imports of leather and leather products in the first eight months of this year. They spent 32% more than in the same period last year on raw hides and skins, 17% more on finished leather, 21% more on footwear, 29% more on leathergoods and 14% more on gloves.