Positive performance in relation to December 2005 is already with seasonal adjustment. In the series without adjustment, the rates for trade sales were 6.54% compared to January/05 and 4.87% for the index accumulated in the last 12 months. Regarding nominal revenue, the rates were 9.47% in relation to the same month of 2005 and 9.96% for the index accumulated in the last 12 months.

The variation of 2.35% in the volume of sales maintained the trend of growth of retail that began in October 2005. Still in the analysis of the adjusted series, calculated for four among the eight activities that form the sector, there were positive results in terms of volume in Hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products, beverages and tobacco (5.97%); Textiles, apparel and footwear (0.32%); and Furniture and household appliances (1.68%). Fuels and lubricants had a negative result (-2.33%), as well as Vehicles, motorcycles, parts and accessories (-9.74%).

In the relation January 06/ January 05, seven among eight retail activities had increase in the volume of sales: Hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products, beverages and tobacco (4.85%); Furniture and household appliances (12.60%); Textiles, apparel and footwear (8.21%); Pharmaceutical, medical, orthopedic and perfumery articles (8.66%); Office, computer and communication equipment (112.77%); Other articles of personal and domestic use (26.02%); and Books, newspapers, magazines and stationery articles (7.63%). The negative change occurred in Fuels and lubricants (-8.62%).

In the composition of the rate of January for the retail trade sales, the major positive impact was observed in Hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products, beverages and tobacco. The indicator of 4.85% was the highest in the monthly performance since September 2005 – a fact explained mainly by the improvement observed in the level of employment, as well as in the average real income in relation to January/ 2005, as indicated by the Monthly Employment Survey (PME). In the index accumulated of the last 12 months, the activity reached a level of 2.97%.

The segment of Furniture and household appliances brought, in January, the second major figure in trade sales. Favorable conditions to consumer credit and loans charged through salary accounts continued to be the main factors in the maintenance of the good performance of this activity in the beginning of this year, as it had already occurred in 2004 and 2005. In the index accumulated of the last twelve months, the activity increased by 15.49%.

The segments such as department stores, glasses’ shops, sporting goods stores, toy stores, etc. are also affected by consumer credit. As a consequence, the activity Other articles of personal and domestic use brought the third major result to the sales in January, with rates of 26.02% in relation to January 2005 and of 15.91% in the index accumulated in the last 12 months.

The fourth major influence in the formation of the overall rate was observed in Office, computer and communication equipment, with change of 112.77% compared to January/05. In the index accumulated of the last 12 months, the segment registered an increase in the volume of sales of 63.77% compared to the immediately previous period. Besides the better credit conditions, the growth is also explained by the raise of the value of the Brazilian currency (real) in relation to the dollar, a factor that caused computer products and other imported products to be relatively cheaper.

The activity Textiles, apparel and footwear brought the fifth major influence in the retail sales in January, with increase of 8.21%. The positive performance can be explained by end-of-season sales. In the index accumulated of the last 12 months, the segment increased by 6.12%.

With the negative rate of –8.62% in January, Fuels and lubricants reached 13 consecutive months of fall, a performance that occurred mainly due to the increase, above the average, of fuel prices. The activity changed by –7.97% in the last 12 months.

State Results

Among the 27 Federative Units, 24 had positive results in the volume of sales in the comparison January 06/ January 05. The major increases were registered in Tocantins (47.82%); Sergipe (39.15%); Amapá (35.14%); Roraima (30.95%); and Piauí (28.68%). Decreases occurred in Paraná (-5.91%); Santa Catarina (-3.37%); and Rio Grande do Sul (-3.36%).

The result with seasonal adjustment of sales indicated the following scenario, in the comparison January 06/ December 05: 18 states with positive and 9 with negative changes. The major increases occurred in Amapá (31.45%); São Paulo (10.29%); Ceará (6.31%); Tocantins (4.13%); and Rio Grande do Sul (3.89%). The negative results were observed in Piauí (-5.14%); Federal District (-2.33%); and Espírito Santo (-1.58%).

Table 2 below shows the changes of the nominal revenue.

Extended retail trade

In the extended retail trade (retail plus the activities Vehicles, motorcycles, parts and accessories, and Construction material), the changes observed in the relation January 06/ January 05 were 3.96% for the volume of sales and 6.99% for the nominal revenue. In terms of the indicator accumulated of the last twelve months, the sales in the sector increased by 2.86%; and the nominal revenue, 8.82%.

In relation to volume of sales, Vehicles, motorcycles, parts and accessories increased by 0.09% compared to January 2005 and 0.70% considering the index accumulated in the last 12 months. Regarding Construction material, it continues falling: -2.15% in comparison with January 2005 and -6.32% in the index accumulated of the last 12 months.

The highest extended retail trade rates regarding the volume of sales by states occurred in Tocantins (41.49%); Roraima (40.44%); Piauí (33.73%); Amapá (31.19%); and Sergipe (28.57%).