The data presented in the report available below were prepared by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Mining, through ProCórdoba Agency. They were obtained from a survey conducted among 300 SMEs based in the Province of Córdoba, which either are exporters or have a potential for export.

The surveys were carried out in may and focused on three stages in order to find out: the firms' situation before the pandemic, their reality during the quarantine and their expectations for the post-COVID-19 back to normal context.

The survey had three main objectives:

• To describe the impact of the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic on the main exporting sectors in the Province.
• To redefine the local offer with the biggest export potential.
• To redefine foreign markets in the face of the new global context.
• To create new tools that allow the business sector to keep developing the internationalization process.

Below you will find the full report (in Spanish) that presents the results of the survey, and a document that presents information by sector.

>> Download the report HERE <<

>> Information-by-sector document: download HERE <<

Some important conclusions of the report are:

As for the principal export markets, SMEs offering value-added agricultural or industrial products see Latin America as their main destination, especially regional markets (Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia).

During the first 70 days after the quarantine was declared, 71 percent of the companies indicated a fall in their exports, especially in regional markets. The fall can be accounted for mainly by a drop in the demand by destination markets and their own restrictions, in addition to the lack of working capital or local funding and the growing obstacles in national and international logistics.

Post-pandemic expectations:

Companies with a potential to gain new markets see possibilities mainly in Latin America (80 percent).
What will demand the companies' greatest development efforts will be following the trend to use new technological tools for virtual contact, negotiation and commercialization. The firms will also need strong support through customized advisory and training related to market and e-commerce.

Considering the above, ProCórdoba Agency has a clear path as to what actions it must conduct and consolidate:

• Support through market recovery.
• Detection of new business opportunities arising from the pandemic.
• Widening the range of technical assistance actions.
• Generation of quality technical information.