In the seasonally-adjusted series, volume of sales of the retail trade dropped 2.6% in December 2022 over November. The quarterly moving average was -1.1%.

In the seasonally-unadjusted series, the retail trade changed 0.4% over December 2021, accumulating a rise of 1.0% in 2022.

In the extended retail trade, which includes vehicles, motorcycles, parts and pieces and construction material, volume of sales changed 0.4% against the previous month, retreated 0.6% in relation to December 2021 and accumulated -0.6% in 2022. The moving average was 0.1%.

The drop of 2.6% in December over the previous month was the second in a row and that of highest amplitude in the year. This result was impacted by the sectors of Hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products and beverages and Other articles of personal and domestic use. In the year, the growth of 1.0% of the retail trade was the lowest one in the positive time series started in 2017, including the entire Covid-19 pandemic period from 2020 onwards.

In the seasonally-adjusted series, seven out of eight activities recorded negative rates

The drop in volume of sales of the retail trade between November and December 2022 registered negative rates in seven out of eight activities surveyed: Fabric, apparel and footwear (-6.1%), Other articles of personal and domestic use (-2.9%), Fuels and lubricants (-1.6%), Furniture and domestic appliances (-1.6%), Hyper and supermarket, food products, beverages and tobacco (-0.8%), Office, computer and communication equipment and material (-0.6%) and Pharmaceutical, medical, orthopedic articles and toiletries (-0.4%).

Only one out of eight groups surveyed did not record a negative rate: Books, newspapers, magazines and stationery (0.1%). On the other hand, the extended retail grew 0.4%, with rises in Vehicles and motorcycles, parts and accessories (2.4%) and Construction material (1.3%).

Six retail activities advanced over December 2021

Compared with December 2021, the retail trade recorded six sectors wit positive figures: Fuels and lubricants (23.8%), Hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products, beverages and tobacco (2.5%), Pharmaceutical, medical, orthopedic  articles and toiletries (0.8%), Furniture and domestic appliances (0.3%), Books, newspapers, magazines and stationery (0.3%) and Office, computer and communication equipment and material (0.1%). Other articles of personal and domestic use (-8.4%) and Fabric, apparel and footwear (-11.9%) stood on the negative side.

In the extended retail, which changed -0.6% in this comparison, the two complementary activities retreated: Vehicles and motorcycles, parts and accessories (-1.8%) and Construction material (-7.1%).

The activity of Fuels and lubricants grew 23.8% in sales over December 2021, against an increase of 27.0% in November 2022 over the same period in the previous year. The contribution of this sector to the inter-annual indicator was the highest one among eight activities: 1.8 p.p. of a total of 0.4%. This sector closed 2022 accumulating a growth of 16.6% in volume, above the cumulative growth in 2021, which had been 0.3%. It is worth reminding that this sector sharply grew from August 2022 onwards, when policies of fuel pricing changed.

The group of Hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products, beverages and tobacco reported 2.5% in December 2022, above the same month in 2021, registering five consecutive months of growth in the inter-annual comparison. Therefore, this activity recorded the second biggest absolute contribution to the rate, on the positive side, adding up to 1.2 p.p. to the total of 0.4% of the retail. In 2022, the accumulated index was positive at 1.4%, a result higher than that in 2021 (-2.6%).

The sector of Pharmaceutical, medical, orthopedic  articles and toiletries dropped 0.8% in sales over December 2021 (7.8%), against an increase of 6.4% in November 2022 over November 2021. The cumulative index over the last 12 months changed from 7.0% up to November to 6.3% in December, reducing the pace of growth. In contrast, the cumulative indicator in the year changed from 6.3% up to November to 9.8% in December, showing a gain in the pace.

The group of Furniture and domestic appliances changed 0.3% in sales over December 2021, the second month on the positive side, after seven months of drops. In 2022, the cumulative index was negative at 6.7% against 2021, which had already retreated 7.0% over 2020.

In December 2022, the activity of Books, newspapers, magazines and stationery changed 0.3% over December 2021. In the inter-annual comparison, the results surpassed those of 2021 in 11 months of 2022. The exception was April 2022, which stood 0.9% below April 2021. The cumulative index in the year was 14.8%, the first one on the positive side since 2013.

The group of Office, computer and communication equipment and material changed 0.1% in December 2022 compared with the same month in the previous year, being the second consecutive month with the inter-annual indicator close to stability: -0.2% in November 2022 against November 2021. For this sector, the year of 2022 closed with a growth of 1.7% over 2021, the first one to close on the positive side after two years accumulating losses: -2.0% in 2021 and -16.2% in 2020.

The sector of Other articles of personal and domestic use, which encompasses department stores, glasses shops, jewelry shops, sporting good stores and toy stores, fell 8.4% in sales over December 2021, the eighth consecutive negative figure, causing this activity to exert the major contribution, on the negative side, among eight aggregations that the survey discloses, adding up to -1.4 p.p. to the total of 0.4% of the inter-annual indicator. As a result, this sector closed the year of 2022 accumulating losses of 8.4% in relation to 2021, being the first time to close the year with negative figures since 2016.

In December 2022, the group of Fabric, apparel and footwear retreated 11.9% over December 2021, the sixth drop in a row: -16.2% in July, -5.5% in august, -9.5% in September, -15.0% in October and -16.4% in November. This sectors also exerted the second biggest influence on the negative side (-1.3 p.p.) on the inter-annual indicator (0.4%). The cumulative index in the year was -0.5%, the first negative figure since 2020 (-22.5%).

Concerning the extended retail trade, the sector of Construction material fell 7.1% in sales over December 2021. In the inter-annual comparison, this sector registered negative changes in 11 out of 12 months in 2022 (the only month to grow was March 2022, with 1.2% above March 2021). In December 2022, the influence in relation to the inter-annual result of the extended retail (-0.6%) was of -0.6 p.p. In the year, the cumulative loss was 8.7%, the first year to close on the negative side since 2016 (-10.7%).

On the other hand, the activity of resale of Vehicles and motorcycles, parts and accessories fell 1.8% in sales over December 2021, the seventh consecutive drop and the eight one in nine months, causing the year of 2022 to close with cumulative losses of 1.7%, in volume, in relation to 2021. The annual figure was the first one on the negative side, after growing in 2021: 14.9% above 2020. Still concerning the inter-annual result, this sector contributed with -0.4 p.p. to the total of -0.6% of the extended retail trade.

Retail advances 1.0% in the cumulative index in the year, the lowest figure since 2016

The retail trade accumulated a rise of 1.0% in 2022, the lowest figure since 2016 (-6.2%). In contrast, the extended retail accumulated a drop of 0.6%, the first one since 2020 (-1.4%).

Two out of ten activities of the extended retail trade accumulated a two-digit growth: Fuels and lubricants (16.6%) and Books, newspapers, magazines and stationery (14.8%). Other three sectors accumulated gains in 2022 as well: Pharmaceutical, medical, orthopedic  articles and toiletries (6.3%), Office, computer and communication equipment and material (1.7%) and Hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products, beverages and tobacco (1.4%).

The other activities recorded losses in 2022: Construction material (-8.7%), Other articles of personal and domestic use (-8.4%), Furniture and domestic appliances (-6.7%), Vehicles and motorcycles, parts and accessories (-1.7%) and Fabric, apparel and footwear (-0.5%).

Sales drop in 19 Federation Units in relation to November

Between November and December, volume of sales in the retail trade retreated 2.6%, with negative figures in 19 out of 27 Federation Units, highlighted by: Federal District (-8.0%), Paraíba (-5.8%) and Amapá (-4.8%). On the other hand, eight out of 27 Federation Units pressed positively, highlighted by Rondônia (3.3%), Mato Grosso (2.8%) and Tocantins (1.6%).

The change was of 0.4% between November and December for the extended retail trade, with a predominance of positive figures in 15 out of 17 FUs, highlighted by: Rondônia (3.7%), Espírito Santo (3.3%) and Alagoas (3.0%). On the other hand, 11 out of 27 Federation Units pressed negatively, highlighted by the Federal District (-5.1%), Roraima (-4.2%) and Amapá (-3.6%). On the margin, Mato Grosso do Sul reported a stability (0.0%).

Sales rise in 17 out of 27 Federation Units in the annual comparison

The change was of 0.4% over December 2021 for the retail trade, with a predominance of positive figures in 17 out of 17 FUs, highlighted by: Paraíba (22.6%), Mato Grosso (11.6%) and Amapá (8.0%). On the other hand, 11 out of 27 Federation Units pressed negatively, highlighted by the Federal District (-5.1%), Roraima (-4.2%) and Amapá (-3.6%).

In the extended retail trade, the change of December 2022, compared with the same period last year, declined 0.6%, with results on the negative side in 15 out of 27 FUs, highlighted by: Pernambuco (-15.4%), Bahia (-7.1%) and Rio de Janeiro (-6.3%). On the other hand, 12 out of 27 FUs pressed positively, highlighted by Paraíba (21.7%), Mato Grosso (11.1%) and Acre (9.2%).