Welcome to a new edition of our online Market Intelligence newsletter, writes Leatherbiz.

This time the publication explores the implications for automotive leather suppliers of lower demand for higher-end cars, especially in export markets such as China.

Market Intelligence points out that the transition to electric vehicles is already quite advanced in China, making imports of combustion engine vehicles to those markets less popular than previously.

Unfortunately, higher end cars have long been among the strongest users of leather in their interiors.

The newsletter points out that there will always be automotive buyers who put more importance on comfort in the interior than on performance on the road. This means there must be hope of ongoing demand for automotive leather.

However, recent news of one manufacturer, Mercedes-Benz, moving production of its S-Class cars to just one shift is disappointing.