Brazil: Decline in retail sales softens in August
Retail sales declined 0.1% in month-on-month seasonally-adjusted terms in August, which was a milder drop than July’s 0.5% decrease. August’s softer fall was largely due to an improvement in supermarkets, food, drinks and tobacco sales. Meanwhile, textiles, clothing and footwear sales gained pace, while furniture and appliances sales expanded. In contrast, other articles for household and personal use sales weakened.
On an annual basis, retail sales rose 1.6% in August, contrasting July’s 5.3% fall. As such, the trend improved, with the annual average variation of retail sales coming in at minus 1.4%, up from July’s minus 1.8%.