The volume of services fell 0.3% in September compared to August, driven by the decrease in Transportation, support services to transportation and mailing activities, -1.3%, and Professional, administrative and complementary services, -1.4%. The two segments together account for more than half of the sector. According to the Monthly Survey of Services, released today by the IBGE, the cumulative indicator in the year shows a negative change of 0.4% and the cumulative index in the last 12 months was -0.3%.

The decrease of 1.3% in the transportation group had a strong influence of the land transportation sector (-1.6%), which faced the truck drivers' strike in May. According to survey manager Rodrigo Lobo, after four months of instability, transportation is back to a change level  in line with the average of the time series.

"With the truckers' strike, the companies failed to sell off the agricultural and industrial production and, as a result, the revenue fell a lot in May, -15.1%. In June, there was an acceleration in the number of trade orders, of 23.2%, but it seems that there was not enough demand, so in July the sector fell again by 0.5%," explains Rodrigo Lobo.

In professional, administrative and complementary services (-1.4%), the decrease was defined by the lower revenues in companies of electronic payment solutions.

With less weight in the survey, 8%, services rendered to families grew by 1.4% in September, influenced by the lodging and food segment. And information and communication services changed by 0.4%.

In comparison with 2017, the sector grew for the second consecutive month in September (0.5%), having grown 1.2% in August. "This marks the beginning of a recovery in the services sector, although growth is still concentrated in 41% of the 166 services investigated," he concludes.