In March 2023, the volume of retail trade sales increased by 0.8% compared to February, in the seasonally adjusted series. The quarterly moving average was 1.5% in the quarter ended in March. Compared to March 2022, retail trade increased by 3.2%, accumulating an increase of 1.2% in the last twelve months and, also, of 2.4% in the year.

The volume of sales of the extended retail trade - which includes, in addition to retail, the activities of Vehicles, motorcycles, parts and pieces, Construction materials and Wholesale of food products, beverages and tobacco, - showed, in March 2023, increase of 3.6% compared to the previous month in the seasonally adjusted series, after an increase of 2.0% in February 2023. As a result, the evolution of the quarterly moving average index for the extended retail trade, after advancing 1.2% in the quarter ended in February 2023, increased by 2.1% in the quarter ended in March 2023.

The remainder is temporarily in Portuguese.

In March, four of the eight activities of retail trade had negative rates: Textiles, apparel and footwear (-4.5%), Other articles of personal and domestic use (-2.2%), Books, newspapers, magazines and stationery ( -0.6%) and Fuels and lubricants (-0.1%). On the other hand, three had growth: Office, information technology and communication equipment and material (7.7%), Pharmaceutical, medical, orthopedic articles and toiletries (0.7%) and Furniture and household appliances (0.3%). The activity Hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products, beverages and tobacco remained stable (0.0%). In extended retail trade, Construction material changed by 0.2%, while Vehicles and motorcycles, parts and pieces grew by 3.7%.

Trade advances 3.2% compared to March 2022 and grows in five of eight activities

In March 2023, compared to the same month of the previous year, retail trade increased by 3.2%, with a predominance of positive rates among the activities, reaching five of the eight activities surveyed: Fuels and lubricants (14.3%), Pharmaceutical, medical, orthopedic articles and toiletries (6.8%), Hipermarkets, supermarkets, food products, beverages and tobacco (4.5%), Office, IT and communication material and equipment (4.1%) and Furniture and household appliances (2.0%). Three sectors showed decrease in the interannual comparison: Other articles of personal and domestic use (-12.9%), Books, newspapers, magazines and stationery (-8.0%) and Textile, apparel and footwear (-7.3%) .

In extended retail trade, the 8.8% increase in sales, compared to March 2022, was followed by Vehicles and motorcycles, parts and pieces (10.7%) and Specialized wholesale in food products, beverages and tobacco (5. 6%). The Construction material sector fell 5.1% in this comparison.

Sales in the Fuels and lubricants sector rose 14.3% compared to March 2022. This sector indicator has been growing for 14 months, since January 2022 (-7.0%). The cumulative index in the year decelerated, going from 23.3% in February to 20.0% in March. The cumulative index in the last twelve months reached 21.0% in March, a figure close to that of February (20.9%).

Sales of Pharmaceutical, medical, orthopedic articles and toiletries grew by 6.8% compared to March 2022, the first positive result after two months of decline (-7.6% in January and -0.7% in February). As a result, the sector accumulates a drop of 0.5% in the year, compared to the same period in 2022. The cumulative result in the last twelve months is 4.0% until March, adding up to 66 consecutive months of positive results.

For the eighth consecutive month, the Hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products, beverages and tobacco sector presents a positive result in the interannual comparison, recording 4.5% growth between March 2023 and March 2022. In the year, it accrues 2.6% up to March, above the figure registered up to February (1.6%). In the last twelve months, the value is also positive until March (2.2%), 0.7 pp above February (1.5%).

The group of Office, IT and communication equipment and materials increased by 4.1% in sales compared to March 2022, reversing the trajectory recorded in the previous month (-2.6%). As a result, the cumulative index in the year increased from 5.9% up to February to 5.2% up to March. In the last twelve months there is also a decrease in the intensity of growth, from 3.9% until February to 2.9% in March 2023.

The Furniture and household appliances sector showed an increase of 2.0% in sales compared to March 2022, going from negative to positive in relation to the previous month, when the interannual indicator had registered -0.7%. In relation to the cumulative index in the year, the result up to March was the same as up to February: 2.1%. In the last twelve months, the inclusion of March does not change the scenario, which changes from -4.5% up to February to -4.9% up to the reference month.

In Other articles for personal and domestic use, which includes department stores, opticians, jewelry stores, sporting goods, toy stores, etc., the interannual indicator recorded a drop of 12.9% in March 2023, the same value as in February. The activity also shows a pace of decline, in relation to the cumulative index in the year, changing from -9.4% until February to -10.6% in the reference month. The same happens in terms of the cumulative result in the last twelve months, which also changed from -9.4% until February to -10.9% in March.

The Books, newspapers, magazines and stationery sector recorded a drop, in March 2023, of 8.0% in sales compared to March 2022, the second consecutive one, since the February result was negative by 9.4%. In the year, the sector accumulates 0.7% growth up to March, below the cumulative result up to February (3.9%). In terms of the indicator for the last twelve months, the sector also slows down, going from 10.6% up to February 2023 to 7.0% up to March.

Sales of Textiles, apparel and footwear decreased by 7.3% compared to March 2022, the second consecutive drop in this comparison and the eighth since July 2022. In this period, only January 2023 (2.4%) was positive. In the year, the sector accumulates a loss of 4.7% up to March, sharper than that of February (-3.3%). For the fourth consecutive month, the 12-month indicator (-5.2%) was negative, as well as in December (-0.5%), January (-0.5%) and February (-1.5%).

In the extended retail trade, the activity of Vehicles and motorcycles, parts and pieces presented a positive result (10.7%) in the comparison of March 2023 with March 2022, after registering -1.3% in February 2023 in relation to the same month of the previous year. In the year, the sector accumulates positive results for the third consecutive month: 4.7% in January, 1.7% until February and 5.0% until March 2023. In the last twelve months, however, the activity accumulates drops for the eighth time, having reached -1.4% until March.

The result of -5.1% between March 2022 and March 2023 for Construction material was the second consecutive negative result. In the last 21 months, the sector had positive results on only two occasions: March 2022 (1.2%) and January 2023 (1.1%). Up to March, the results, both in the year and in the last twelve months, the are also negative: -3.3% in the year and -8.4% in the last twelve months.

The activity of Specialized wholesale in food products, beverages and tobacco grew 5.6% comparing March 2023 with March 2022, the first positive result of the series, which began in January 2023. In 2023 until March, the activity accumulates -0.7% of losses, a figure lower than the cumulative value until February, which was -5.1%.

Sales grow in 23 of the 27 Federation Units

From February to March 2023, in the seasonally adjusted series, the volume of retail sales in the country grew by 0.8%, with positive results in 23 of the 27 Federation Units. The biggest rises were in Espírito Santo (5.7%), Paraíba (5.4%) and Alagoas (4.8%). On the other hand, there were falls in four of the 27 FUs: Rio de Janeiro (-2.0%), Federal District (-1.4%), Tocantins (-1.1%) and Maranhão (-1.0%).

In the same comparison, the volume of sales of the extended retail trade grew 3.6% from February to March, with positive results in 22 of the 27 Federation Units. The highlights were Tocantins (22.3%), São Paulo (14.1%) and Paraná (8.9%). On the other hand, there were decreases in five of the 27 FUs: Rio Grande do Sul (-4.0%), Ceará (-1.7%), Roraima (-1.4%), Rio Grande do Norte (-1. 3%) and Maranhão (-0.8%).

Keywords: Em março, vendas do varejo crescem 0, 8%