Monthly Survey of Services
Services sector has high of 1.1% in February
April 27, 2023 09h00 AM | Last Updated: May 03, 2023 05h39 PM
The volume of services grew by 1.1% in February 2023 compared to the previous month, when there was a decrease of 3.0%. Compared to February 2022, the sector increased by 5.4%, the twenty-fourth consecutive positive rate. In the cumulative indicator in the first two months of this year, the volume of services showed expansion of 5.7% compared to the same period of 2022. The cumulative result for the last twelve months was 7.8%. The data are from the Monthly Survey of Service (PMS), released today (April 27) by the IBGE.
This is the second release of the new survey series, which underwent updates in the selection of the sample of companies, in addition to methodological changes, with the objective of portraying economic changes in society. These updates are previously planned and periodically implemented by the IBGE.
“Information technology services and the transportation sector continue to set the pace for services in the country. The most dynamic segments continue to perform well, while those most affected by the pandemic, especially in-person activities, have already overcome the long distance they had from the pre-pandemic period. In February, there was a recovery of part of the loss seen in January. The configuration of the services sector, therefore, does not change significantly in the first two months of 2023”, analyzes survey manager Rodrigo Lobo.
With a rise of 2.3%, the transportation sector was the main positive influence in the month
The transportation sector was the highlight in February's result, being responsible for the greatest positive impact, registering growth of 2.3%. In January, the same sector had the greatest negative influence on the result for the month. “Road transportation of cargo, which is the main mode through which goods travel on Brazilian roads, continues to benefit from the growing demand coming from agribusiness, e-commerce and, to a lesser extent, the industrial sector, notably capital goods. and intermediate goods, which operate above the pre-pandemic level”, explains Mr. Lobo.
Information and communication services (1.6%) and other services (0.7%) also stood out positively in February. The first had a cumulative gain of 2.4% in the first two months of the year, while the second, after registering a strong retraction in January (-8.6%), returned to growth.
On the other hand, professional, administrative and complementary services (-1.0%) and services rendered to families (-0.7%) were the negative influences in February. In the case of the first sector, it was the second consecutive negative result, with a cumulative loss of 3.1%. The last one eliminated part of the gain (3.5%) registered in the last months of December and January.
Passenger transportation (2.6%) and cargo transportation (2.0%) rose again in February
After a decrease of 3.4% in January, the volume of passenger transportation in Brazil increased by 2.6% in relation to the previous month, in the seasonally adjusted series. The segment is, in that reference month, 5.0% above the level of February 2020 (pre-pandemic) and 18.6% below February 2014, the highest point of the time series.
The volume of cargo transportation, in turn, grew by 2.0% in February, recovering a significant portion of the 2.3% loss observed in January. Thus, the segment is 1.3% below the highest point in its series, reached in August 2022. Regarding the pre-pandemic level, cargo transportation is 32.2% above February 2020.
In the cumulative indicator for the first two months of this year, passenger transportation expanded by 9.0% compared to the same period in 2022, while cargo transportation increased by 9.8% in the same period.
Services grow in 20 of the 27 Federation Units
By area, most (20) of the 27 Federation Units registered expansion in the volume of services in February 2023, in comparison with January, accompanying the increase observed in the national result (1.1%).
The most important impacts came from Mato Grosso (7.7%) and Pernambuco (6.1%), followed by Pará (7.2%), Minas Gerais (0.8%) and Paraná (0.8%). “In Mato Grosso, agribusiness plays an important role, and production is mainly transported by land. So, road transportation of cargo stands out. In the case of Pernambuco, hiring temporary labor was what boosted services the most”, adds Mr. Lobo. On the other hand, São Paulo (-0.1%), Federal District (-1.7%) and Rio Grande do Sul (-0.8%) were the main negative influences in the month.
Compared to February 2022, services grew by 5.4%
Compared to February 2022, the increase in the volume of services in Brazil (5.4%) was seen in 26 of the 27 Federation Units. The Federation Unit with the highest positive contribution was São Paulo (2.9%), followed by Rio de Janeiro (6.1%), Minas Gerais (8.7%), Paraná (9.9%) and Santa Catarina (9.7%). On the other hand, Mato Grosso do Sul (-0.3%) registered the only negative result of the month.
Tourism activities have a retraction of 0.7% in February
In February 2023, the index of tourism activities showed a decrease of 0.7% compared to the previous month, after advancing for two consecutive months, a period in which it accumulated a gain of 5.5%. With this result, the tourism segment is 1.9% above the February 2020 level and 5.2% below the highest point in the series, reached in February 2014.
Regionally, only four of the 12 locations surveyed followed this down movement seen in the national tourism activity (-0.7%). São Paulo (-4.6%) exerted the most intense negative influence, followed by Ceará (-8.0%), Rio Grande do Sul (-2.8%) and Santa Catarina (-2.4%). On the other hand, Rio de Janeiro (1.8%), Minas Gerais (2.7%) and the Federal District (4.9%) had the most significant advances.
In the comparison between February 2023 and the same month of the previous year, the index for the volume of tourism activities in Brazil expanded by 14.8%, the twenty-third consecutive positive rate. The main factors that explained this increase were the increase in revenues of companies operating in the car rental business; hotels; restaurants; air transportation; mass road transportation of passengers; catering services; and travel agencies.
All twelve Federation Units where the indicator is investigated showed progress in the services aimed at tourism, with a highlight to São Paulo (12.5%), followed by Minas Gerais (25.2%), Rio de Janeiro (12.4% ), Bahia (20.2%), Paraná (23.0%) and Santa Catarina (23.9%).
In the cumulative indicator of the first two months of 2023, the index of tourism activities showed expansion of 13.8% compared to the same period of last year, mainly driven by the increases in revenue obtained by companies in the car rental business; restaurants; hotels; travel agencies; mass road transportation of passengers; and catering services.
More about the survey
The PMS produces indicators that make it possible to monitor the short-term behavior of the service sector in the country, investigating the gross revenue from services in formally constituted companies, with 20 or more employed persons, whose main activity is a non-financial service, excluding the health and education. There are results for Brazil and all Federation Units. The results can be consulted on the Sidra database.
