Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and thank you for waiting. Welcome to MAHLE Metal Leve Conference for the Third Quarter 2021 Results. With us here today, we have Mr. Daniel Brasil Alves, Marketing and Corporate Communication Manager, Mr. Daniel de Oliveira Camargo, Executive Accounting Manager, and Mr. Fábio Lopes Peres, Executive Finance Manager. This event is being recorded and all participants will be in a listen-only mode during the company's presentation. After MAHLE Metal Leve remarks, there will be a question -and -answer session. At that time, further instructions will be given. Should any participant need assistance during this call, please press Asterisk Zero to reach the operator. This event is also being transmitted simultaneously through the Internet via the webcast and can be accessed through the investor relations website of the company, where the presentation is also available. Participants may view the slides in any order they wish.
The replay will be available shortly after the event is concluded. Those following the presentation via the webcast may post their questions on our website. They will be answered by the IR team after the conference is finished. Before proceeding, let me mention that forward statements are based on the beliefs and assumptions of MAHLE Metal Leve management and on information currently available to the company. They involve risks and uncertainty because they relate to future events and therefore depend on circumstances that may or may not occur. Because in future events, they will be discussed. Now, I will turn the conference over to Mr. Daniel Camargo, who will begin the presentation. Please, Mr. Daniel Camargo, you may begin your presentation.
Good afternoon, everyone. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to this results conference call of MAHLE Metal Leve to talk about the third quarter 2021. Before we start with our agenda, I hope everyone is safe and healthy. After this presentation, we will be available, as mentioned, for our Q&A session. I will start our presentation with slide number two, where we see our agenda. We will talk about the highlights of this quarter. We will talk about the general view on the market, talk about net sales results and performance, then financial management, investments, and then questions and answers.
In slide number three, we have some highlights on the third quarter of this year. Numbers, the net sales BRL 949.5 million, 37.4% higher than the third quarter of 2020. In the accrued number, it was 64.4% higher than the same period of last year. This as an earning per market in the domestic aftermarket, we had BRL 267.4 million in the third quarter, 12.3% higher than the third quarter of 2020. In the nine months accrued period, the domestic aftermarket was 50.9% higher than the same period in the previous year.
In the domestic OE, our income was BRL 277.4 million in the third quarter of this year, 67.4% higher than the third quarter of 2020. In the accrued period, 86.6% higher. In the aftermarket sports, BRL 86.2 million in the third quarter, which means 42.5% higher than the same period last year. In the accrued period, we had 60.4% higher than the same period last year. In the original equipment exports, we had BRL 318.5 million in the third quarter, 40.4% higher than the third quarter of 2020. In the nine months of the year, it was 61.5% higher than the same period last year. Now I would like to call Mr. Daniel Brasil, who will talk about the general view on the market and the performance of net earnings.
Thank you, Mr. Daniel Camargo. Good afternoon, everyone. Once again, thank you for your participation in this MAHLE Metal Leve results conference call. It is always a pleasure to welcome you here. Let me start on slide number four, where we have sales and production in Brazil and Argentina market for the nine months of 2021 against the same period for the first nine months of 2020. The first table, we have light vehicles. We have Brazil, Argentina, and the total. In sales, we had an increase of 13% in the Brazilian market. In Argentina, there was an increase of 18.9%. Brazil plus Argentina responded for 13.8% in growth. Talking about the expectation for the end of 2021 in the Brazilian market. If you consider ANFAVEA, the production is +1% or +2%. In Argentina, this figure will be 1% or 2% positive.
The closing for light vehicle sales will probably be 0%. The same vehicle sales as in 2020, the year of the pandemic. Taking this into a global perspective, the projection of global vehicle sales is less than 1%. We have difficulties with competitors and semiconductors, it was pretty challenging. Talking about the production of vehicles in Brazil, there was an increase of 20.5%, in Argentina, 85.5%. Brazil plus Argentina meant 28.1%. Comparing 2021 to 2020 in Brazil, the ANFAVEA updated projection is 3%-7% growth, depending on the pace of the last three months. In October, it was a little better than this lower estimate by ANFAVEA. From 3% to 7% is the total estimate. In Argentina, it will be nearly 60%.
When we analyze the two combined markets, there is an estimated growth of 10% in the production of lightweight vehicles. Talking about medium and heavy vehicles in Brazil, there was an increase in sales of 46%. In Argentina, increase in sales of 50.8%, and the two countries combined, 46.5%. In production, there was an increase in Brazil of 84.6%, in Argentina 95.9%, in Brazil plus Argentina, 84.8%. In medium heavy vehicles, the scenario is different, very positive, even higher than 2019 pre-pandemic. For the whole year of 2021 against 2020, sales will increase more than 30% in total vehicles production. In production, over 50% against 2020. Moving on to slide number five. We have the vehicle production in U.S. and Europe, the two main export markets for the company.
North America for lightweight vehicles in production for the nine months of 2021 against the same period in 2020, there was a growth of 7.7%. In medium and heavy-duty vehicles, there was a growth of 33.4%. If we put together North America in lightweight and medium and heavy-duty vehicles, 8.6%. In Europe, light vehicles 8.8%, in heavy, 28.8%. In Europe, 9.4% then. The total vehicle production meant a 9.1% in growth. The performance of heavy-duty vehicles was better than lightweight vehicles. The year must close to the year of 2020. Maybe a little slightly lower because 2020 was the year of the pandemic, and we had a lot of setbacks in the production chain. Slide number six, we have net revenues performance by market. The first table talks about the third quarter.
After then we have the accrued of the year for the nine months, comparing this year to the previous one. So in the first column, we have the first nine months of 2021, then the volume price effect, then exchange rate change, and then the third quarter 2020, and the three last columns talks about variations. Now talking about the domestic original equipment market. There was 86% difference, less 2.5% in exchange rate change. It refers to sales in Argentina. We have a plant in Rafaela.
These sales converted to reais generates this 2.8% negative impact. The 89% of the domestic market impact. It is better if compared to vehicles, and the main reasons for this better result from MAHLE Metal Leve is the mix, because we talked about lightweight vehicles plus heavy-duty vehicles. The sales for replacement markets, OES. There was also an increase in market share. These are the three main reasons.
Second market is original equipment and exports, where we had a growth in the year-to-year of 61.5%, and impact of rate 30.3%, and the other impact 32%. Also, a performance better than the market. Once again, the mix of heavy duty contributing to this increase in revenue. Domestic aftermarket, a growth of 50.9% year -to -year, impact of exchange rate - 11.3%, impact volume price 62.2%. This exchange rate impact concerning Argentinian sales also, we had a negative impact. In relation to domestic aftermarket, the most impact is of the strong demand, increase in market share, especially due to exchange devaluation of the real.
In the aftermarket export, a growth of 60.4%, exchange rate impact 5.8%, volume price 54.8%. A total in the aftermarket of a growth of 53% with impact of exchange of - 7.6%, volume price 60.6%. Both markets combined, original equipment and aftermarket, we had a year-to-year growth of 64.4%, impact of exchange rate of 7.6%, volume price 56.8%. Now going to slide seven. We have consolidated export per geographic region of the most important markets. So we have here Europe and North America, South America, and other markets. Not much variation on this graph. I give the floor again to Daniel Camargo, and at the end, I will be at your disposal for Q&A.
Thank you, Daniel Brasil. On slide number eight, going on with the presentation, we have the gross margin, and we can see the gross margin in the nine months that improved from 24.4% to 29%. However, on this year, and especially on the third Q, the margin has been suffering pressures because of increase in prices on goods and freight and energy. As we know, it is not a privilege of our sector. In many sectors, this has been happening. This is why the margin of the 3Q 2021 is a little bit lower or smaller than 2Q 2020.
The company is really striving to protect the margin and sustain it at historical levels, trying to compensate this pressure that we have been suffering with process automation synergies in the manufacturing process. On the next slide, we have expenses with sales. They have the same trend of the gross margin, as we said, and they have been increasing because of freight and different expenses in sales, lack of containers. G&A are at better levels percentage-wise when we compare one quarter to the nine-month period in relation to revenue. So they represent a smaller percentage, which is good. R&D expenses.
The company, in a conservative way still, is focusing in developing products that can be quickly applied and sold. In other operational revenues and expenses, the most important impact is non-recurrent tax credit, as we have commented in 2Q 2021 because of the exclusion of ICMS due to the calculation base of PIS and COFINS. This is the most important factor along this line. Now, I give the floor to Fábio Peres to comment about the financial net result.
Good afternoon. Talking about the financial result. First block of this table shows the net interest rates comparing the periods of the third quarter and the accumulated of 2021. So I will focus on the last three columns for us to be able to have our discussion. The second block is exchange rate variation and results with derivatives, and the third one is the currency variation. At the bottom part, we see how much we paid in the period of 2020. During the year, 3.3%, and SELIC in those times was much lower than nowadays.
Today, 8.5%, the level of payment for this year. Also aligned with that, we have the investment application in 2020, BRL 348 million, and now in 2021, a little bit less, BRL 278 million. Putting all this and making the math, we have an improvement in our financial result of almost BRL 24 million. Here, as Daniel commented, we had the tax credits and we had the interest rate included here. This is why we have here, when we look at 2021, we have a value of 9.4%. That is almost the total of this interest. In relation to exchange rate, we had an improvement delta BRL 38.9 million.
The most important reason was the exchange rate variation due to the loans we applied this year. Last year we had BRL -88 million, and this year it is positive, so we improved BRL 98.5 million. When we combine the exchange rate variation of our accounts receivable and payable, the variation of ACC and other transactions that are basically receivables in foreign currency, we have a total of BRL 38.9 million. The last topic here is the net currency variation. We had a small one, BRL 8.2 million, that is due to corrections of our fiscal and employee processes. When we compare both periods, the delta was, as you saw. Total result, we reached an improvement in the financial result of BRL 61.6 million. So total of revenue and expenses for the cumulative period of 2021 is BRL 12.1 million.
Same exercise we do for the debts that we have there, the cost of debt of 4%. Now we have a mean cost, taking into account all the loans that we had throughout the nine months of the years, we have 3.9%. The average of almost BRL 600 million for 2021, and now BRL 280 million for 2021. Next slide, we can see here in the first chart to your left, we see the cash liquidity, where we had in December BRL 680 million. Here we have BRL 404 million.
The loans or finances, BRL 552 million against BRL 216 million. When we see 62% in the short term, you can see the distribution of the due date considering the next 12 months, from October 2021 to September 2022. We have a disbursement in June 2022 of BRL 85 million, which is exactly ACC and NCE that you can see in the upper right chart. That is 36% at a cost of 0.7%. In the last graph, we see disbursement in the long run that starts in October 2022 and goes to the end of 2030. 63.8%, which is basically the loans that we have from FINEP.
This is the scenario today of our indebtedness. Always reinforcing what Daniel said, that the company has, as a principle, the protection of the results. Here we can see that the financial management has been working to maintain the levels low today in 3.2% in the weighted. The position is September 30. The weighted cost of the debt, 13.8%. 36% corresponds to ACC and FINEP, 64% of the total. Now, slide number 12. We see the investments that were done until September this year, almost BRL 45 million, and last year during the pandemic, BRL 17 million, BRL 18 million.
This, in terms of depreciation in 2020, represented 22.4%, and this year it represents around 60%. Obviously, the company will go on investing, analyzing the new projects of rationalization, and of course, always monitoring the whole scenario and demand of our clients so that investments are aligned with that, and looking at the need of the company in terms of renewal and new projects for our clients. We finish here our presentation, our comments, and we open for Q&A sessions. You can participate and send your questions so that Daniel Brasil and Daniel Camargo are here to answer your questions. Thank you.
Ladies and gentlemen, we will now begin the Q&A session. If you have a question, please touch star one. To remove your question from the queue, touch star two. Let me remind you that if you have any questions, please type star one. Our first question comes from [Jillian Diane] JP Morgan.
Hello, how are you? I would like to know, with the hike in the prices of 30%, 40% in semiconductors in the past few years, and in setbacks in the supply chain, and considering that these prices will remain high, what can you do for the next few years to deal with that? Congratulations for your presentation. Thank you very much.
This is Daniel Brasil. Regarding semiconductors, the year of 2021 was difficult, not only in Brazil but globally as well. Everyone suffered with the lack of this product, this component. There was a struggle between auto parts companies and several plants around the world. The estimate that we have for 2021 is that we will still face challenges in this scenario. This situation is expected to last till the half of next year. We have a low stock, a low inventory for vehicles, and we cannot sell more due to this restriction in products. This is the scenario we have regarding sales and production of vehicles. I do not know if I answered your question. Your voice was a little low.
Oh, thank you. You did. But when semiconductors industry is back to normal, what about production? Will it get back to normal even with higher prices?
Oh, good question, by the way. We have a repressed demand. We have had an increase in the price of vehicles of over 20%, if you consider the past 12 months. But even so, there is a change in the market. If you look at the sales of SUV vehicles, this is a premium market, we know, but even more popular cars with lower prices, we have a difference. We have a decrease. It is getting back to normal little by little. Yes, I believe that we have a repressed demand, and when the product comes back, then we will sell more. But it is not easy to say that 2021 will be challenging. There was a deterioration of expectations. That is a challenge, but on the other hand, that is also a suppressed demand or repressed demand that is to be met.
Thank you very much.
Let me remind you that if you have any questions, please press star one. We now close our Q&A session. Let me call Mr. Daniel Camargo for his final remarks.
Thank you very much, everyone. Thank you very much for those who attended this conference call. I wish you all remain healthy and safe. Thank you very much.
MAHLE Metal Leve conference call is hereby closed. Thank you all for your participation, and we wish you have a nice day.