Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to MAHLE Metal Leve's video conference to discuss the results for the third quarter of 2024. This video conference is being recorded, and the replay can be accessed on the company's investor relations website. The presentation is also available for download. We inform that all participants will be only watching the video conference during the presentation, and then we will start the question-and-answer session when further instructions will be provided. Before proceeding, I would like to emphasize that the forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs and assumptions of MAHLE Metal Leve's management and the current information available to the company. The statements may involve risks and uncertainties since they relate to future events and therefore depend on circumstances that may or may not occur.
Investors, analysts, and the general public should take into account that events related to the macroeconomic environment, the segment, and other factors could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in the respective forward-looking statements. Present at this video conference, we have Mr. Cláudio César Braga, Financial Director, Daniel Alves, Marketing and Corporate Communications Manager, Mr. Fábio Lopes Peres, Executive Finance Manager, and Mr. Evandro Tozatti, Aftermarket Director for South America. I would now like to give the floor to Mr. Cláudio, who is going to start the presentation. You may proceed.
Thank you, Sophia. Thank you, everyone. Thank you for your time. We are here with you to talk a bit about the results of Q3 accumulated in the past nine months of 2024.
We have a slightly different agenda since we started in two previous quarters with a guest bringing an interesting topic, not necessarily focused on financial reports that are interesting for the market overall and investors. The agenda is a bit long, but I think it's quite interesting. We start with the earnings results presentations of Q3, main highlights. We had some interesting changes that were discussed in Q2 and over Q3. We're going to briefly comment on them, and Q4 will bring more details since we're going to have things happening in October this year, late September. Then we're going to have Daniel Alves talking about the market overview and the performance of our sales revenues.
I'll talk about financial results, and then we're going to have Fábio Peres, who's going to talk about our financial management and financial expenses, and then we'll turn over to our colleague Evandro Tozatti, responsible for the aftermarket division, with some quite interesting comments to share with you. The idea of having Evandro with us came mostly from the roadshow that Sinai did a few months ago, the project of acquisition of compressors and thermal, and we saw great interest of investors to know the aftermarket area, and we invited Evandro, and he kindly accepted our invitation, so we open up for Q&A. Thank you. Here, moving straight to the highlights, we close the first nine months with BRL 3.2 billion net sales revenue, a bit below what we saw in the months of 2023, about 20% below. We see by Daniel Alves a great part of exports.
Daniel will explain the dynamics. Follow up wise, the EBITDA 20.9%, a bit of sales on a percentage point above what the first nine months of 2023 were. But we can go into details after that. This is because it highlights a bit at a high level. We had an EBITDA at 18%, 19%, 20%, best moments, 21% this year. We have the result, the EBITDA of 23%. I should not share many details yet because everything was closed in Q4, but I'd like to thank in advance for the support and the trust of all of you. We were able to close quite successfully the projects we disclosed to the market. Two of them would be the acquisition of compressors, a unit in Jaguariúna, in the state of São Paulo, and thermal aftermarket. This part goes into the division that Evandro will explain to us.
We were able to materialize the acquisition of 33% of Arco Climatização. Those projects were aimed at roadshow comments, and we disclosed to the market, and we are very excited to close the Q4 with all of the in the MAHLE Metal Leve universe and share with you everything we've managed to do. Now I'd like to turn over to Daniel Alves. Thank you.
Thank you, Cláudio. Good morning, everyone. Thank you for your participation of our earnings results video conference of MAHLE Metal Leve. I start with automotive industry. I have good news and bad news, starting with the local market, sales and production of the Brazilian and Argentine market on the first line, sales of light vehicles. We have Brazil with 1,752,000 units across the 14.2% when compared to the first nine months of last year. Q3 this year is 13% higher than Q3 last year.
We're on an ascending curve since the beginning of the year. It's quite a heated market and quite an interesting percentage. October is not yet on these numbers. If we consider that it's been the best sales months since 2014, the market is quite bearish and bullish, while the projection of Fábio is a growth of 10.9%. Moving to Argentina, we have a drop of -10.7%. However, there is an improvement regarding Q2. Q2, this number was -21%. We had four consecutive months in sales of Argentina above 40,000 units, including October. The whole Q3 of 2024, as well as October, with sales above 40,000, the market is recovering after a pretty bad beginning. We've improved the outlook for closing the year in Argentina. At the previous call, this projection was to close the year between minus 15% and 20%.
Currently, we have an outlook of -5% to -10% of the Argentine market, contributing to this positive movement of production that we're going to talk about shortly. Total in Brazil plus Argentina growth of 10% to 3 million vehicles sold. The projection for closing 2024 compared to 2023 has also improved slightly, and now we're talking about 6%-8% growth. An important increase compared to 2023. As to heavy vehicles, important to remind you that last year we had the possibility of selling vehicles with emissions in the legislation Euro 5, so we still were allowed to make those sales. This distorted slightly the market. Now, since we have nine months gone, so this is more or less equalized. We have a growth of 12.7%. We had 7,000 units sold of buses and trucks. We have a trade show FENETRE this week.
It's very busy, and the market of heavy duty is resuming. The industrial GDP, there is a good recovery. The agribusiness also recovery, leveraging the sales of trucks and the part of buses, so Caminhos da Escola, another program, quite interesting, and an outlook for closing this year for heavy levels of 10.9%. We may be surprised with a better number than this. In Argentina also, there has been an improvement in the past nine months, a drop of 5.7%, and an outlook of closing this year between 0% and -5%. Total in Brazil and plus Argentina, 117.4 thousand, the growth of 10.8%. Outlook of closing this year between 10%-11%, with both light and heavy sales and market with growing demand. This growing every quarter. Moving to production of light vehicles in Brazil, a growth of 5.2%.
Despite the interesting growth, we see a mismatch between sales and production, sales growing 14% and production 5%. The two major reasons I mentioned previously, the previous quarter, we have an increase of imported vehicles, especially from China, in this number, and also a drop in exports. So this is a double effect generating a mismatch. Exports, we had an improvement in the past four months. There is a growing curve, and Fábio published recently the October numbers. There's been an improvement regarding what was happening before. Then the outlook for closing production of 3.4%. This is the outlook of Fábio for closing production for light vehicles in Argentina. Despite the improvement in production, still suffering a bit with 22.1%, negative 362,000. Outlook of closing this year between -15% and -20%.
October, there was a volume of production of 50,000 units, so it's an ascending curve, both sales and production, and closing Brazil plus Argentina in the past nine months, a drop of 0.8%, and an outlook of closing this year at 1%. Previous quarter, the outlook was zero, so we have an improvement of 1%. If we add October to the calculation, this number presents that year to date to October. It's a positive number, and the outlook to close is one in heavy duty vehicles, a growth of 42.1%. Reminding you that last year we sold stock or products or vehicles in inventory, so year five, the production was smaller this year because of inventory sales, and we had a growth of 42%, an outlook of 32% to close the year.
Even taking this effect of inventory, the market, as I've mentioned in sales, that is quite heated, actually driving the heavy duty vehicles. Argentina dropped off 14%. Outlook of closing this year between minus 10% and 15%, total in Brazil plus Argentina in the production of heavy duty vehicles, a growth of 38.2%. Outlook closing above 30%. Moving on to the news that is not so positive in the part of exports, the automobile industry, Europe and North America, we had a drop both in light heavy duty in production. Europe light vehicles, a drop of 3.7%, and an outlook of closing this year at minus 4%.
North America with a drop of 1.2% and projection to close this year minus 1%, adding Europe plus North America, minus 2.5%, and an outlook of closing this year between -2% and -3%, especially Europe suffering a bit more in the sale of vehicles, well, in production of light vehicles and heavy duty. The scenario is a bit worse. Production of heavy duty in the European market with a drop of 12%. North America, drop of 3%, total in America and Europe now 7.5%, outlook of closing this year at -10%. Demand is weaker. Last year, we had a growth of two digits. This is also influencing these numbers, and we have a weaker 2024 for heavy duty vehicles, especially. Moving to slide six. Nós temos aqui a evolução da receita líquida.
We have the evolution of net revenues of Q3 2024 compared to Q3 2023 and the first nine months of this year compared to last year. So numbers are quite similar. So we have a drop in original equipment, especially in exports. And aftermarket, there is a growth with a drop in the domestic aftermarket. In Q3, you observe a growth that is stronger for the original domestic of offsetting the worsening of the export with 18.6%. So you have 8.4% compared to 18%. So the effects are quite similar of the quarter and the year to date. The original equipment domestic, we see production of light vehicles with a drop of 0.8% and heavy with a growth of 38.2%. We here have an increase in revenues in the part of heavy duty vehicles. We have the engines delivered to agricultural machinery.
So there's a drop in this market related to the MAHLE Metal Leve's sales. This is also considered. So we can have an increase in revenues of original equipment, domestic original equipment. We had a negative effect of indirect exports we provided to heavy vehicle clients here in Brazil. And the OEM exports the engines to Europe, for example. As we saw the European market dropping, the export of our customers has also been reduced. So this also impacted our sales in the domestic original equipment. This is why the growth is not so strong on the slide. Export original equipment, we saw the drop in market, especially diesel, HVO, heavy, where we have a greater share in exports. And also an effect of a special valve that we provide to light vehicles. And this engine, this light vehicle has a rundown.
Impactando a nossa receita. Impacting our revenues.
That totals original equipment, a drop of 5.7%, drop of BRL 1,817,000. In the domestic aftermarket, a drop of 1%. We should remind you that our aftermarket sales in Argentina. We have our aftermarket unit in Argentina and Buenos Aires. What I said there, the market goes into this line of domestic aftermarket. We had a significant drop in Argentina aftermarket, especially due to the economic adjustment by the government, so our customers were keeping stock. We had a huge devaluation late last year, so this is impacting the market, and we see the growth of aftermarket in Brazil almost offsetting the strong drop in the Argentinian market. We have Evandro here.
Os detalhes aí pra gente.
Who gave further details to us on the aftermarket segment and related to revenues.
This is the drop that happened that took place in Argentina, but Brazil almost matches the drop. As to exports, significant growth of 20.9%. As mentioned in Q2, reminding you of this, we had last year that was weaker because of political and economic uncertainties in the countries we export here in Latin America. In 2024, we had the implementation of a new commercial policy and a dedicated sales team for the Colombian, Peruvian, and Chilean markets. This is mirrored in our numbers of export aftermarket and a total revenue growth of 2% and totally the company with -2.5%. Showing resilience despite drop in exports of original equipment and also the Argentinian market of aftermarket. I turn back to Cláudio and I'll be available for questions and answers at the end.
Falando pouco do trabalho.
Thank you, Daniel. Talking about revenues.
Talking about sales, we notice sales Q3 2024 vis-à-vis 2023.
Aproximadamente quase 1 percentage point.
Almost 1% point. Basically, this drop derives from raw material prices, and this is the factor on the first row, net operating revenue. The dynamics of recovery of prices, the negotiation with clients is different depending on the market they operate. In 2024, we managed to get backdated credit and sales prices in one of our divisions, helping the first row. But the cost did not occur this year. These two factors lead our gross profit to 30%. It's higher than Q3 of 2023. When we look at the past nine months, it's quite stable along the year, about 30.5% on average.
Further down on overhead, sales and distribution expenses and GNA, we see basically a static number, BRL 75 million in Q3 and also 24 equal to 23 in terms of sales percentage, almost identically in the accrued. We have 10.5% on average without major changes. Further down, when we look at research and development, we have a pleasant surprise. We notice a drop in absolute value of BRL 3 million quarter over quarter in the accumulated. It's quite similar. In Q3, we notice a reduction, quite interesting part of this. If you remember, I believe it was in the Q2 or Q1 presentation, we called the person in charge of research and development, our colleague Roberto, to explain he approached the transfer filter labs from North America to South America. This helped us solve the fixed cost of the R&D center in Jundiaí and generate additional revenue.
This is a service we provide and sell with a margin. This has helped us, and I believe in Q2, Everton came back with us to talk about the MOVER project. MAHLE has been quite active in the development of the MOVER project, one of the first auto part companies to help. We see some tax benefits helping us in R&D expenses. Quite interesting for you who have followed us. We posted on social media and some platforms. We have signed the contract of the credit line of FINEP, BRL 110 million. We go with BRL 10 million in FINEP, almost BRL 100 million in three fronts diluted over three years with an interest rate that is extremely attractive. The lowest FINEP has to offer. It's a long-term relationship, the great cross between MAHLE and FINEP.
We are very grateful to all of them, and that helps us sustain the projects that we're trying to develop over this year in research and development. Looking at our revenues and operational expenses, we see it in, well, see a difference in Q3. We had a quarter that was quite smooth regarding that. We had a first quarter this year, if you remember, in the results of Q2, we communicated an adaptation of provisionings for the environment, decontamination of some of MAHLE's units. We did not need to do any correction of provisioning, and that was correct in our best understanding so far. There's been a reversion of a provisioning that offsets our tax credit in the aftermarket unit, the building. It's a process that was being discussed in court for a long time, and then it's being favorable to MAHLE.
This is a matter of the city hall to include it in the budget so that we can deal with certain regulatories, and this explains the slight change in the line between 23 and 24. Further down, I believe that in line with what Daniel Alves explained to us, the recommendation of the Argentine market, we also notice in the consumer audience and the government and central bank, we see a trend of stabilization, which is quite interesting. We see the Q3 2024, quite acceptable number, very much in line with our history. There's not been a devaluation of the currency of the Argentine peso against the dollar, and I think this is going to be diluted with time. However, we notice some movements of the Argentine central bank that are quite interesting for making payment to suppliers easier.
That was something that was quite stuck until December last year with the change of presidency of federal government. Some flexibilization happened with the central bank. There has been a favorable movement recently enabling payment of suppliers. This is in line with the foreign exchange devaluation that did not take place. Gains in the monetary of controlled companies abroad have been very much in line with what was happening in Q3 2023. What draws our attention. That was very much explained in the closing of March. The accumulated is quite high, 90.4 million to 0.8. So we had two, three years of hyperinflation in Argentina, but not at the levels that it reached, 150%-100% a year. This has been showing a trend of improvement.
When there is hyperinflation for a longer period than three consecutive years, we have to update all the profit and loss and liabilities and assets. This impacts the net worth of the company. You can see it in our IR's website and other parts in revenues and expenses, and then our profit and losses, and there's an offset and gain in the last row of our position, monetary position of our controlled company abroad. Our EBIT income before expenses is higher than what Q3 was last year in the accumulated, still higher, not so strong as 2024. Thinking about Q3 2024, thinking about Q3, I believe the strongest point that drew our attention has been an improvement in the cost of goods sold and research and development, the main factors that put Q3 2024 above average.
On average, it's quite consistent with the lower financial expenses. And looking at that, well, Fábio Peres will explain that in more detail. We notice basically we're going to spend this year explaining these changes. There's been a change in indebtedness of MAHLE from 2023 to 2024. In Q4 last year, there's been a movement. I believe most of you remember and have benefited from the payment of dividends, and that led to the indebtedness of the company. It was not something that MAHLE was used to. And now we have these financial expenses overall. It draws our attention when we compare year over year because the profile of the company has changed regarding indebtedness. When we compare to market peers, we've been addressing that frequently in IR with investors that are interested.
Our level of leveraging is well below our peers, but it's a number that draws our attention when we compare period over period. Moving to income tax before taxes, 2021, again, 19.3% compared to 23% last year. It's pulled by the financial revenue I've mentioned. When you look at the accumulated of the year, it's very much in line with what the past quarter has been. Income tax, we notice an increase in income tax with the adaptation of Brazil to the OECD rulings regarding Pillar Two. Some of our entities abroad had a readaptation of their results. The taxation level has increased in Austria. For you to use, you can see more details in our financial reports. This is nothing atypical for MAHLE for any company that has activities abroad. Net profit of 12.3%, very much in line of 13.3%.
Well, we have a drop year over year of 18%-12%. Basically, when we look at the line of financial or P&L, well, we have a great explanation too. So it, as we showed in the first slide, 23% of the accumulated, also 23%. Olhando pouquinho. Well, if we look at this, well, this is the second quarter. We include this page, although it's in our income statement and IR website. I've shown this for a long time. We have financial expenses against the financial revenue. Our point is to draw your attention to net debt because of a project and cash generation. This is the goal of this chart. So we have moved from the 31st of December 2023, which showed the main movements in the past nine months. I want to draw your attention to what we have acquired over this year.
We need to remember that we made payout of dividends 2023 in May this year. There's been a new indebtedness of BRL 330 million, but we amortized other loans of BRL 310 million. This led to an expense with a cash effect of BRL 22 million. And we see two columns ahead that our cash generation is extremely positive, BRL 500 million in nine months. And the excess of this cash is invested, which generates revenue on the financial investment of BRL 26. So our neutral cash, so we pay of interest is what we get from what is being invested. So somebody can ask, why not prepay with the cash generation and pay the indebtedness? Indebtedness was made with a foreign exchange float, and it's not appropriate to amortize it currently. And this debt is going to actually expire 2025-2026. So cash management is very well done.
We have a payment of dividends and they appealed to the BRL 40 million in taxes. Investments made that are approved by the board of directors over these quarters generated a cash output of BRL 66 million and others of BRL 50 million. Before turning over to Fábio to delve into the financial part, I'd like to draw your attention, well, that we haven't included a slide that happened at the same time. Yesterday, we called an extraordinary shareholders meeting. We had a board meeting on the 5th of September. We apologize. 5th of November for the terms of results. It's apologies. The same should happen in the first 10 days of December, and basically, there are two topics that need to be submitted to the approval of shareholders. The main one is capitalization of the legal reserve. I believe that at a more timely moment, we can elaborate that.
It's a common market move. We have to remind you the acquisition of Compressors and Thermo because they are related parties. Many of you have questioned that regarding the impact on dividends. We gave no guidelines, so with the valuation data, the two valuations, well, actually the cash generation and the results were positive for MAHLE Metal Leve. However, the premium paid and the operation, the value of the transaction, the P&L book generated premium that would go of sudden changes. Many of you questioned the procedure on impact on dividends, and we've explained because it's not because it's a related party, it's not profit and loss. It goes to equity directly. And of that hyperinflation in the past two, three, four years in Argentina, you see in the income statement the evolution of net worth. We have an evolution.
We count on your understanding on the general shareholders meetings because the capitalization of the Legal Reserve is very important for MAHLE Metal Leve. We'll elaborate on it next month. If you have any questions, I will close my participation, and I'll turn over to Fábio Peres. Thank you.
Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for your participation in our result call. We're going to talk a bit about financial management, focusing on the net financial results. Cláudio has mentioned the foreign exchange floating, and we can see here in the nine months of 2024, where we see BRL 56.6 million, while last year we only see BRL 6 million. As he put it quite well, this does not have an effect on the cash, but it's more an accounting thing. This will be amortized in 2025, 2026. On the first line, we have net interest on the past nine months.
I'm going to focus on Daniel, who is following the nine months because the explanations are quite similar. In the past nine months of 2024, we had an expense of BRL 5.9, whereas in 2023, it was BRL 16.5. This is an effect of a depreciation or reclassification we made in the past regarding cash volume and the profits we had in Argentina. We should remember that Argentina has been reducing interest rates month after month, and last year, we had about 30%, and now it's 35%. So it's being greatly reduced. It was 50% to 35%, the, well, foreign exchange changes come from the foreign currency index, loans, and monetary variation. We had a revenue for BRL 0.7 in the past nine months this year. Last year, we had an expense of BRL 7.4.
The delta between the periods is BRL 151 million, BRL 22 million referring to interest, BRL 62.2 million referring to foreign exchange changes, BRL 12.1 million due to monetary variation. In the table below, we see net financial position, the assets and liabilities. We have BRL 109 million against 31st of December, BRL 383 million. And the financing borrowings we have today, 86% in the position of September 2024, long term, and 14% in the short term. We remind you that we have the convertible bond and the finance loan that we have in December 2023. We had BRL 314 million in the short term of borrowings, accounting for 37% of the total and 63% in the long term. When we compare the period over period, it's quite stable. We have a variation between periods of only BRL 14 million, and our leveraging, as Cláudio mentioned previously, is quite healthy of about 0.51 times EBITDA.
So we see that we have a management of our debt, always keeping it in the long term and a quite healthy cash level for the company to have its borrowings and investments over time. Now, I turn over to Evandro, who's going to make an explanation and presentation on the aftermarket part. And at the end of the call, we'll be available to clarify possible questions that you may have. Thank you very much.
Obrigado, Fábio. Boa tarde a todos. Obrigado pelo convite e pela participação.
Thank you, Fábio. Good afternoon. And thank you for your invitation and participation. I'd like to talk about the aftermarket and actually the initiatives that have been implemented in allowing sustainable growth of the aftermarket in the past few years. On the next slide, we have the aftermarket is directly related to the running fleet.
This is the data of the running fleet in South America, Central America, the countries we operate in, the replacement market area we're calling light for passengers and cargo. For 2024, this fleet should be 89.9 million with an increase rate based on market projection of from 2023 to 2029, 1.6% growth. 55% of this market is concentrated in Brazil, followed by Argentina. We should highlight that the platform of vehicles both in Brazil and Argentina are quite similar due to the local production, unlike the other countries where the fleet predominantly are platforms from the U.S. Of the 25.7 million vehicles in the other countries, we have 12.2 million vehicles in the Chilean and Colombian markets. Something that is important to highlight is the age of the running fleet vehicles. Usually, most of them have maintenance in the aftermarket after the third year.
As data in the region, the running fleet in Brazil has a light line of 11 years, buses 17, trucks 12. The future projection is that the age of the fleet should increase in the light line, a bit in buses, a bit drop in trucks because of the large volume we had of vehicles coming in last year in the region. The fleet age is that there is a policy of renewing the fleet. It's quite favorable for the aftermarket business. It may impact the aftermarket business, the totally electric vehicles because of the maintenance features. In some regions of the world, this impact happens in the short term. But based on the estimates of market, the fleet of totally electric vehicles will account for less than 1% by 2029. The hybrids have slightly different behavior. The forecast is 1.9%.
Overall, electrification does not bring any impact that is significant to the aftermarket business in the next five years. The feature of this fleet overall is that there is a current demand in the market. The fleet is more complex with new models in the fleet, more diversity, shorter terms for renewal platforms, and that demands for launches of products, greater demand of product launches to maintain the technical support to mechanics and also training in new technologies. We can see on the next slide the main trend that may impact the aftermarket business in the forthcoming years. Obrigado. There's an increase in demand of access to vehicle data, especially for maintenance, digitizing of channels with an increase of tools implemented, connecting B2B distributors, auto parts, stores, and the garages, and also e-commerce.
E-commerce is important to highlight that many sellers of e-commerce are traditional auto parts that are exploring a new form of. Has been through e-commerce, exploring regions that they do not operate. So geopolitical tensions may impact foreign exchange changes, cost of transportation that impact imported products, companies that have strategic sales of imported products in the region. New influences determining the place and when maintenance is performed. This point, participation, increase of the fleet of rental companies and insurance companies, they define where and when maintenance will be performed. Actually, it's not the user that should decide. Actually, those that maintain the fleet in South America. The estimate is that about 20% of maintenance of vehicles takes place within the dealerships, and especially for vehicles under guarantees, unlike regions like Europe and the United States. In the aftermarket, this is predominant.
We see movement of the OEMs aiming at expanding their participation in the aftermarket in the region because of the future feature of the market in the region with acquisitions that have recently taken place in Brazil and Argentina of companies that act in the replacement market. Private labels have a small share in the South American market. Unlike the U.S. market, we see movement of distributors and retail trades developing their private labels, especially for products that are commodities as a price strategy regarding imported products and the market consolidation. We have distribution channel. Most companies are family-owned companies. Most of them, the management is with the first generation. Many of the companies do not have a succession plan that is clear, well-defined for the management of the company, and the market is extremely fragmented. Probably the greatest distributor in the region has less than 10% of market share.
There is a movement of acquisitions. The great distributors are acquiring smaller companies, and private equity groups are making acquisitions and retail chains opening new branches and points of sales in various regions of the country. Next, we have indicators of MAHLE and aftermarket indicators. So you have access to the data. In 2023, the sales were BRL 1.8 billion, a growth of 100% compared to 2020. Great growth in the domestic market, as pointed out by Daniel. We have the Brazilian and Argentinian market and the export market, also with a smaller growth regarding the national markets. Sales mix is quite balanced and showing sustainable growth. 53% of sales for heavy-duty lines and 41% light, as 6% of two-wheel. And the sales mix is quite healthy. There is no concentration of sales in terms of customers. The largest one accounted for 7% of sales in 2023.
The product portfolio that we currently explore in the sales, the leadership of engine components, filters, and air conditioning, cooling, and also the electric components, where we have for the agricultural lines or equipment for tools, for diagnostic and mechanical services. This is a plant of the MAHLE Group in Parma, Italy. We have products imported to sell in the region. 86% of the sales comes from products produced by MAHLE Metal Leve or companies of the MAHLE Group. MAHLE Metal Leve products account for 71% of the total sales of MAHLE Metal Leve in the aftermarket. Here we can share the strategic pillars, main initiatives that are enabling sustainable growth of MAHLE in the aftermarket. The strategy was defined a few years ago that basically is based on five pillars that increase MAHLE's participation of customers.
The great strength of MAHLE Metal Leve's in the region is its distributor network. The main clients and distributors, the companies that are making this consolidation of the market, are MAHLE customers, and we have a standing-out positioning with these customers. We have a channel strategy focus and the market share growth, reinforcing the MAHLE brand, a robust GTS, go to source and go to market structure focused on management of suppliers, product category, and the regionalized structure focused on the market to provide support, direct, indirect customers, and last pillar is strong market presence with a generation of demand in the whole distribution chain in auto parts, stores, and distributors. All of that supported on the pillars with a focus on the action of selling of our distributors, selling sell-out, providing to the market a broad and competitive product portfolio with an approach with data analytics and market knowledge.
Based on that, we'd like to highlight some initiatives on the next slide related to product portfolio. In 2023, this has been strong work in our market, identifying demands by the market, considering the features of the fleet. Use of vehicles demand for product launches right after the launch of vehicles is necessary. Last year, over 600 new SKUs were launched, generating over 570,000 parts sold. At the same time, we developed tapping into market opportunities. We had new product lines as coolants for radiators, strengthening the strategy and operations of the company in the thermal industry of parts. In Argentina, we developed batteries for the vehicles. It's a partnership with a private label. And there's a growing trend of vehicles with automatic gear. So we had a complete portfolio for transmission oil filters and also air intake manifolds. 2024. Desafio, ele continua. Our challenge continues.
The plan this year is to launch 1,100 new SKUs that will generate about 1.3 million sales potential units. The focus of the launches is expanding the existing portfolio, especially having solutions in the part of engines, camshafts, gaskets, and guide seats, and rockers and cylinders, and explore potential, expanding our portfolio in the agricultural sector and also for construction, benefiting from the region's agricultural potential in Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay. Another initiative has been extremely important in August 2022. We launched a program of demand generation and communication called Together for Rio. This program has been updated. Now we are MAHLE for Rio. Actually, they are actions that generate demand in all the channel and distribution market. We can see some more details of these initiatives. They are relationship actions of customers that are direct, indirect.
We are experienced actions and promotional, connecting our distributors, our customers with experts, and also providing unique experiences for these groups. The point of sales generating demand, in addition to promoting our product line, generating sales actions, is a rich source of information for development and understanding of the market for demand generation. We had a training program, is the Blue Glove program. E para trazer um pouco de todo esse cenário. To bring a bit of this scenario, we have a video that we're going to share with you to tell you a bit of the story that started in 2022, which has generated positive results up to now.
Já parou para pensar em como uma ideia cresce? Falamos muito em ter ideias, mas como é que ideias se tornam maiores?
You notice how an idea grows? We have many ideas we talk about.
But how we get ideas? We see that, we feel that, we can prove that ideas grow when we cultivate them together. Together for Rio. The initiative Together for Rio started in 2022 with our aftermarket team, and it was thinking about each one of our clients that it became bigger than just another idea. Suddenly, it grew in the minds and hearts of distributors, retailers, advocates, and other MAHLE units. With countless actions that took place to present and connect everyone through a new way of thinking and performing. Together for Rio. And of course, over 2023, it was consolidated with incredible achievements. Together for Rio started journeys, opened doors, and united everyone focused on a single goal.
Juntos para valer. Together for Rio crossed borders and took knowledge.
And more than that, Together for Rio became a mantra, a language, an opening for new connections and valuable lessons, a bridge to new experiences.
Propósito, norte, uma força.
A purpose, a north, a strength, a way of making it happen. We've seen, we've done all of this together because together we are MAHLE for Rio. We are MAHLE for Rio.
No próximo slide, nós podemos ter pouco dos dados, né, de quantas as ações.
Next slide, we can see some data as to how much has been generated on the market. We trained more than 14,000 people in 2023, over 6,000 visits in retails. Well, we have a program for visit fleets and visit engine rebuilders. So we had plans every month. We promote with clients from all over Brazil, from Latin America. They have the opportunity of knowing the production processes.
You can see a bit of this effect of all this initiative. This is the result of the survey conducted by Cinau, the Automotive Intelligence Center, in partnership with the Oficina Brasil Group. They carry out a survey with share of mind, with mechanics, with garage and Brazilian. In 2019, it was ranking sixth. In August 2022, when the program was launched, the survey usually is communicated in December every year. And last year, we were happily surprised, and we had the result of being in the fourth position in the opinion of mechanics as the most remembered brand by them. This is the result of all the actions generated by the MAHLE Metal Leve's team at the market. Another initiative that is extremely important, launched in March this year, is connected with the demand, especially of mechanics or garage.
We are launching an action which is the Blue Globe Mechanic, a program of training the new generation of mechanics, along with institutions, technical or vocational schools, and initiatives of our own technical team in the market. It connects both actions on in-person training and also the launch of a platform of distance learning with a certification for the program. It's an innovative program that strengthens the presence of the brand to mechanics, and in MAHLE's view, the heroes of aftermarkets are the mechanics, and they are professionals that need support and of the plant. We have a video about this program that we would like to share with you.
Vem aí o programa MAHLE Luva Azul, que confere.
MAHLE Blue Globe is recognition and identifies specialist mechanics who reach the highest technical and theoretical levels, providing services with high professional performance to their customers. Para alavancar o nível.
To leverage the MAHLE Luva Azul program as a part of the journey relationship, we need a training journey and also a relationship in a world where technology moves fast. The Luva Azul Mechanic is the one that is updated and also attentive to novelties. To be a MAHLE Luva Azul Mechanic is to have the highest qualification to your garage. Be a Luva Azul Mechanic yourself.
E para encerrar a apresentação, nós
of the presentation, we'd like to share what guides all the actions of the aftermarket team. It's a market that is extremely dynamic and competitive to be simple, easy to do business with. The first option for choice for our customers is the mantra in aftermarket that guides the activities of the internal team as well as the team in the field with our customers. I close the participation of aftermarket.
I believe we're going to move to the Q&A session. We now start the Q&A session for investors and analysts. If you would like to ask a question, please click on raise hand. If your question is answered, you can leave the queue by clicking on lower hand. Our first question is from Jonathan Koutras from J.P. Morgan. Please, Jonathan.
Good afternoon. Can you hear me? Very well. Claudio, Daniel, how are you doing?
Thank you for the time. We have two questions on our side. The first and in the segment of original equipment, there's been a decrease in exports. So Daniel mentioned the ramp-down of products in the segment. I'd like to understand that if he mentioned the valve that was exported in addition, which regions you see more weakness of original equipment between the U.S. and Europe?
How this line will behave from now on, I'd like to understand. Second question is related to cooling with the company. What do you see Arco positioning if you're opening up later when you make your presentations next year? Thank you.
Thank you, Jonathan, for the question. I start with the first, and then Cláudio will talk about the second. With regards to export, this valve is for the U.S. market, is a specific project, an application of a V8 engine, and the European market that is weaker. You see on the year-to-date of nine months, we have a drop, especially in the heavy-duty market. The original equipment market in the region offsets a bit that drop and the aftermarket growth. We have been talking about the pillar of the company being the three markets, both domestic, aftermarket, and exports.
This provides resilience when you have a market dropping and the others will offset it. I don't know if I've answered your question or if you have any other questions. No, it is clear. Thank you, Daniel. I think Cláudio can comment on the second. Arco, both the Arco project and the compressor and thermal acquisition project will mention in more details in Q4. It will be in March. It's been approved by CADE, as you've mentioned. There's a great difference that we won't see Arco being consolidated. It's a minority stake of 33%. So we'll basically see if there is a payment when there will be payments of dividends coming in as assets, as investments. So we do plan to come back with more details on the two operations. All in Q4. We do not want to anticipate things because none of the two interfered in Q3.
Thank you anyhow for the question. Okay, good afternoon. Our next question comes from Pedro Tineo from Itaú BBA. Bom dia, pessoal. Obrigado por terem vindo à pergunta. Thanks for taking our question. I have a question more related to the dividend payout. I'd like to explore how we can think about the future of this cash generation flow, talking about possible M&As and the possible payout of dividends. Very cool presentation on the aftermarket. I'd like to see whether you can talk a bit more about the growth that you expect for MAHLE within this segment. Thank you very much. Obrigado pela pergunta. Thank you for the question. I'll start and then I'll turn over to Evandro. A gente está falando pouquinho de futuro, né? So we're talking a bit about the future. Well, Pedro, basically, there have not been any changes in the dividend policy.
There has been, as part of the process over the year in indebtedness last year, over this year with these acquisitions and payments, the dividends, quite strong ones. If you look into the past, we took all the reserves that we had in 2023 and now in 2024, already the Legal Reserve that we are bringing for our next general shareholders' meetings for capitalization and Legal Reserve. It's not as uncommon, common market practice, yeah, but Legal Reserve is basically you're accumulating 5% of the result of every fiscal year. It's not a great factor. We cannot give you any guidance or guideline on the dividends. You made a comment that I wanted to add to without going too far.
Mergers and acquisitions is a way of growing, one of the main ways, and that for a company of our size in a market that is a market that we have and where we belong. All of this may generate some potential demand, but if there is something, something that we'll discuss on a timely moment. Currently, as I can say, there have been no changes and we are not making any changes to the policy of our dividend payout policy. Thank you, Pedro, for your question. Actually, the demand generation actions have been important in the market being closer. Well, there's a movement, for example, that is generating lots of results to be close to the customers in exports, as has been mentioned.
We had an action that was acting directly, as it happens in Brazil and Argentina, eliminating commercial representatives and having local structures in countries like Chile, Colombia, Peru being close to our customers to understand market demands, time to market of products, competitiveness. This actually has been very well accepted by customers. The pillars I've mentioned to you, there are actions focused mainly on increasing sales of our customers to the market in a policy of sales closer to customers and supporting the market overall. This has been a strategy that continues. It has been yielding positive results to the market and also recognition, especially of the mechanics and auto parts. They carry out a key role in the aftermarket scene, influenced by the brand. So they disseminate the brand they use and close work to garages and mechanics, providing support.
Novos negócios têm sido realmente.
And especially opportunities of new businesses is the strategy we've been adopting, and it continues to be applied, which is a positive strategy regarding the market.
Lembrando que para fazer perguntas.
We remind you that to ask questions, you click on raise hand again. If you wish to ask a question, please click on raise hand.
Não havendo mais perguntas,
since there are no more questions, we close the session. We'd like to turn over to Mr. Cláudio Braga to make the final remarks of the company.
Well, thank you once again for your time, for your trust, and you can give us some feedback through the IR department. Comment what you think about the initiative of the guests we have been bringing to our conference calls, our ideas to bring experts on the topics that you think can be of interest to you.
If there is anything else that you'd like to have us share with you, tell us. Yeah, we can share as many details as possible. As I've mentioned in the beginning, I'm quite excited about the closing of the year based on Daniel Alves's comments. It's been a Q4 that seems to be quite interesting up to now, and it is the first quarter in which
Compressores e termal.
In which we have the two companies acquired within Metal Leve, not fully. We'll see that in 2025, but we'll be able to share more details more openly with everyone, the result of the transitions that you have been following. I'd like to say goodbye. I thank my colleagues who have made the preparations and presentations, and we are available through our IR website. Thank you very much. Good afternoon and have a nice weekend.
The MAHLE Metal Leve video conference is now closed. We thank you all for your participation and wish you all a very good day.