Automotive and Auto Parts

Rio Grande do Sul aims to consolidate its automotive industry as a global player in vehicles and components. The State has a favorable environment for the installation of new industries in this sector, which represents an important part of industrial production and has suppliers of raw materials, qualified labor and institutional expertise . Supply chains for the automotive sector - metalworking, plastic, rubber and electronics; are concentrated in the Serra and Metropolitana regions.

Most of these companies are institutionally organized in the Serra Gaúcha Metalworking and Automotive Local Productive Arrangement (APL), which, through the support of the State Government, seeks to promote the consolidation of metalworking and automotive companies in the region, through the quality of services and own products and those of its partners, to enable business development and technological innovation.

The manufacturing industry of motor vehicles, trailers and bodies¹ is present in 107 municipalities in the State. In 2021, RS had 654 establishments, which employed 39,519 people. The municipalities of Caxias do Sul, São Marcos, Porto Alegre, Gravataí, Canoas, Erechim, Novo Hamburgo and Cachoeirinha concentrate 50% of establishments in this segment. Caxias do Sul, Gravataí, Porto Alegre, Erechim, São Marcos concentrate 81% of jobs².

The General Motors (GM) plant, in Gravataí, is considered the company's largest and most productive plant in the Southern Hemisphere, and has already reached the mark of 4.5 million units produced (2023). The State also has bus assemblers (Marcopolo and Neobus), trucks (Agrale), agricultural machinery (AGCO, John Deere) and road implements (Guerra and Randon), which boosted the creation of a varied support industry and supply chain, in addition to a broad base of auto parts companies.

The State has a privileged geostrategic position, which provides easy access to important automotive markets in Brazil and Latin America, such as São Paulo and Buenos Aires. It also offers a maritime outlet through the Port of Rio Grande, which allows the export of manufactured products and the import of raw materials and equipment. Since the conclusion of the Trade Facilitation Agreement (FTA) between Brazil and Chile (2018), RS has become an important platform for exporting automotive products to that market. In 2022, the sector accounted for the three main products exported to the Chilean market from Rio Grande do Sul: Bodywork for motor vehicles (US$ 101 million), Passenger cars (US$ 49 million) and Trailers and semi-trailers (US$ 47 million), in addition to tractors (US$ 17 million) and motor vehicles for the transport of ten people or more passengers (US$ 14 million).