In 2008, the 1.4 million commercial companies in the country employed about 8.2 million persons and generated net operating revenue¹ of R$ 1.45 trillion. Throughout the same year, a total R$ 83.1 billion were paid in salaries, withdrawals and other compensation.

Between 2007 and 2008, there were no structural changes in trade. The number of employed persons increased from 7.57 million to 8.22 million (8.55%) and the number of companies did from 1.33 million to 1.43 million (7.47%).

Such data are part of the Annual Survey of Trade (PAC) 2008, whose objective is to describe the basic structural characteristics of trade in the country according to three major categories: retail trade, wholesale trade and trade of automotive vehicles, pieces and motorcycles. This year PAC has incorporated the new national Classification of Economic Activities (CNAE), version 2.0, which represented the incorporation of some new activities and a bigger level of details in the activities previously investigated. Data of 2007 were republished according to the new classification, and the comparability of PAC 2008 with editions released before 2007 is not possible.

Comparisons between 2007 and 2008, by category, reflect increase in terms of number of companies and of employed persons. In retail of automotive vehicles, pieces and motorcycles, the number of employed persons increased 12.13% and the number of companies did by 5.51%. In wholesale trade, the number of employed persons increased 7.28% and the number of companies, 6.95%. Considering retail trade, there was more 8.38% of persons employed, and 7.77% of increase in the number of companies. The table below presents results in detail:

Retail companies amounted to 80.0% of the total

In 2008, the 152.5 thousand wholesale trade companies represented 10.7% of the total, but accounted for 44.6% of the net operating revenue (or R$ 649.6 billion). The segment employed about 1.415 million persons (17.2% total) and paid R$ 22.4 billion in salaries, withdrawals and other compensation (26.9% of the total) throughout the year. The trade margin² of wholesale trade reached R$ 108.8 billion (37.5% of the total).

Retail trade was formed by 1.1 million companies (80.0% of the total) and generated R$ 576.8 billion in net operating revenue (39.6%). On December 31, 2008, it employed 5.984 million persons (72.8% of the total), salaries, withdrawals and other compensation (R$ 50.7 billion) made up 61.1% of the total, and the trade margin of retail trade amounted to R$ 147.3 billion (50.8% of the total).

The net operating revenue recorded for the trade of vehicles, pieces and motorcycles corresponded to R$ 229.0 billion (15.8% of the total). The segment encompassed 133.6 thousand companies (9.3% of the total) and employed 823.4 thousand persons (10.0% of the total), paying R$ 10.0 billion in salaries, withdrawals and other compensation (12.0% of the total) throughout 2008. The trade margin reached R$ 33.7 billion (11.7% of the total).

Retail trade presented the highest trade margin rate³, 34.8%. This means that, among the three subsectors surveyed, it presented the highest relative return by monetary unit of product sold. Trade margin rates for vehicle wholesale and retail trade were, respectively, 21.3% and 17.9%.

Small companies are the majority in the trade sector, they employ more people and generate the biggest revenue

In trade, companies which employed up to 19 persons (97.6%) generated the biggest figures for net operating revenue (42.0%), value added⁴ (50.6%), salaries and other compensation (53.0%) and employed the biggest number of persons (62.9%). The ones with 500 or more employed persons (only 0.03%) generated 30.9% of revenue, 26.1% of value added, 24.4% of salaries, withdrawals and other compensation and employed 16.5% of the persons in the segment.

In wholesale trade, companies which employed up to 19 persons (92.8%) accounted for 17.0% of the net operating revenue, 27.6% of value added, 22.8% of salaries, withdrawals and other compensation and 37.3% of employed persons. Companies with 500 or more employed persons (0.1%) generated 37.6% of revenue and 26.5% of the salary volume produced, besides having participated with 25.5% of value added and 17.3% of the total number of persons in the segment.

In the trade of vehicles, pieces and motorcycles, companies with 100 to 249 employed persons (0.43% of the total) generated 24.1% of revenue and accounted for 18.4% of value added, 16.9% of salaries, withdrawals and other compensation and 10.6% of the persons employed. On the other hand, companies with up to 19 employed persons (96.5%) generated 35.3% of value added, 38.9% of salaries, withdrawals and other compensation employed 59.3% of the persons, having generated 20.6% of revenue ion this subsector.

In wholesale, the information and communication technology sector pays highest average salaries⁵

From this month on, the Annual Survey of Trade will be based on the new National Classification of Economic Activities (CNAE), version 2.0, which means the inclusion of some new activities and a bigger level of detail in other activities investigated by the survey. An instance of disaggregation refers to the activity of resale of equipment and computer and communication services, which is now investigated and tabulated separately.

In wholesale trade, the value added generated by trade of information and communication technology services and equipment corresponded to R$ 3.4 billion in 2007 and R$ 3.8 billion in 2008, contributing with 4.9% and 4.4%, respectively, in wholesale trade. The net operating revenue amounted to R$ 20.4 billion in 2007 and R$ 24.6 billion in 2008, 3.8% in both years. In terms of salaried paid, this activity spent R$ 1.0 billion (5.5%) in 2007 and R$ 1.3 billion (5.7%) in 2008, having employed 29.2 thousand persons (2.2%) in 2007 and 33.7 thousand (2.4%) in 2008. Within wholesale trade, the activity offered the highest average compensation, 7.4 minimum wages in 2007 and 7.1 in 2008. It also recorded trade margins figures equivalent to 29.2% and 24.6%, respectively.

In retail trade, the activity of resale of information and communication equipment generated R$ 3.7 billion (8.4%) of value added in 2007 and R$ 4.4 billion (8.8%) in 2008. Its net operating revenue represented 6.9% (R$ 11.7 billion) of the total retail segment in 2007 and 6.6% (R$ 13.6 billion) in 2008. Salaries paid in both years corresponded, respectively, to R$ 1.2 billion (6.0%) and R$ 1.6 billion (6.8%). The activity employed 165.7 thousand (6.6%) persons in 2007 and 186.4 thousand (6.8%) in 2008. The activity presented an average salary close to that of overall specialized trade: 1.5 minimum wages paid in 2007 and 1.6 in 2008, versus overall average of 1.7 in 2007 and 1.6 in 2008. Trade margin rates corresponded to 44.6% and 49.5%, in 2007 and 2008, respectively, and the overall averages were 49.5% and 46.7%, respectively.

Other changes in PAC after adopting the new CNAE are:

- The activities of trade representatives and agents (except vehicles and motorcycles), which were once investigated by the Annual Survey of Services (PAS), now are encompassed by PAC;

- Some activities of product resale, which formed a single class before have been disaggregated. The wholesale trade of steel products and the resale of paper and cardboard and packages are now analyzed separately.

- In retail, activities related to culture are now tabulated together, with the creation of an activity of sale of cultural, recreational and sports items; and

-Activities of resale of electronic pieces and accessories are now released together with those relative to trade of furniture and illumination articles and trade of optical items together with trade of pharmaceutical, perfumery and cosmetics and medical and orthopedic articles. These activities used to be part of trade of other products.

__________________________________________________________

¹ Gross revenue minus the deduction of taxes and other contributions (ICMS, IPI, ISS, PIS, COFINS etc.), sales cancelled, price reduction and discounts.

² Difference between net resale revenue and the cost of products sold.  

³ Division of trade margin by the cost of the good resold.

⁴ Difference between gross production value and intermediate consumption.

⁵ This analysis of compensation has been calculated through the comparison of activities in a more aggregated way. When trade activities are disaggregated, the resale of fuels and lubricants has an average monthly wage of 8.0 minimum wages, in 2007, and 7.6, in 2008.