“The health emergency, still ongoing, prompts the utmost caution “. This is the extreme summary of the current situation offered today by Fabrizio Nuti, president of UNIC – Italian Tanneries, during the Annual Assembly of the association held in Milan.

Prudence is a must

An invitation to caution that Nuti, having reached the turning point of the first year of his mandate, detailed outlining a sort of progression of the sector data: “We left at the end of 2019 with some declining indicators: turnover -6%, production -9%, export -8%”. Then, the world changed. “Between February-March 2020, violent and completely unexpected, the pandemic hit us. At the end of last year we recorded significant drops in terms of turnover (-23%), production (-16%) and exports (-25%)”. Then, 2021 arrived, which “was characterized by supply difficulties and the increase, even in double digits, of leather and chemical products, energy costs, which are driving inflation”.

Recovery is in progress

A particularly complex economic context, in which, explains the UNIC president, “it is essential not to register loss of margins at the end of the year”. Here, then, that 2021 expresses a ” turnover of + 23%, exports + 25%, production + 13%, with widespread (and often double-digit) increases in all the main districts and on almost all production segments by type. animal and intended use. On this last point it is worth noting the important recovery of leathers for furniture in the last two years, after more than a decade of continuous downsizing”. In conclusion, the values remain below the pre-pandemic production and turnover levels between 5 and 20% “but we hope that 2022 can bring us back to full normality”.