In February 2019, the voume of sales of the national retail sales stood stable (0.0%) against January, in the seasonally adjusted series, after an advance of 0.4% in January. The quarterly moving average, after rising 0.5% in January, fell 0.6% in February.

In the series without seasonal adjustment, in comparison with February 2018, retail trade increased 3.9%, the seventh positive rate in a row. The cumulative index in the year, against the same period in 2018, increased 2.,8%. The cumulative index in 12 months rose 2.3% in February 2019, having remained practically stable for the thir consecutive month. 

In extended retail trade, which includes the activities of vehicles, motorcycles, parts and pieces and Construction material, the volume of sales decreased 0.8% against January 2019, eliminating most of the 1.0% increase recorded in the previous month.The quarterly moving average of February (-0.5%) recordeda a decrease, after increasing 0.2% in January.

In relation to February 2018, extended retail trade increased 7.7%, the twenty-second positive rate in a row, whereas there was cumulative increase of 5.4% in the first two-months of 2019. The cumulative index in 12 months changed from 4.7%, from January to February, to 4.9% in February, recording slight increase in the volume of sales. The complete publication is available on the right of the page. 

Among the eight activities surveyed in February, four recorded increase and the other four, decrease

Stability (0.0%) in the volume of sales of retail trade between January and February 2019, in the seasonally adjusted series, resulted from the balance between positive and negative contributions, with four activities each.  Among the sectors recording increase, the highlight was Fabric, apparel and footwear, followed by Other personal and household articles (1.0%), Books, newspapers, magazines and stationery (0.2%)  and Pharmaceuticals, medical and orthopedic articles, toiletries and cosmetics (0.1%)

Negative contributions came from Hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products, beverages and tobacco (-0.7%) and Fuels and lubricants (-0.9%), Furniture and household appliances(-0.3%) and Office, computer and communication material and equipment (-3.0%).

In extended retail trade, in February, the volume of sales fell by 0.8% against January 2019, in the seasonally-adjusted series. In this same comparison, there were decreases in the sectors of Vehicles, motorcycles, parts and pieces (-0.9%) and Construction material (-0.3%), after increases of 5.8% and 0.2% in the previous month.

In February 2019, against the same month in 2018, in the seasonally adjusted series, retail trade increased 3.9%, with positive rates in seven of the eight activities surveyed. It is worth mentioning the positive influence of Carnival festivities, once February 2019 had two business days more (20) than February (18).

Among the activities recording increase, the highlights were, in order of contribution to the overall rate, Other personal and household articles (10.7%), followed by Pharmaceuticals, medical and orthopedic articles, toiletries and cosmetics (10.1%), Hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products, beverages and tobacco (1.5%) Fabric, apparel and footwear (10.7%) Fuels and lubricants (3.0%) Furniture and household appliances (2.7%) and Office, computer and communication equipment and material (2.9%). 

The negative contribution to the sector came from Books, newspapers, magazines and stationery, with a decrease of 24.3%, its ninth in a row.

With an increase of 7.7% against February 2018, extended retail trade recorded its twenty-second positive rate.  That result was mainly due to Vehicles, motorcycles, parts and pieces (19.4%), which recorded a two-digit increase, followed by Construction material (9.3%) and Other personal and household articles (10.7%). 

The volume of sales of  Other personal and household articles - which encompasses department, optical, jewelry, sport articles, toy stores, etc. - rose 10.7% against February 2018 and  6.1% against January, mainly due to the calendar effect and, exerted the second biggest influence on retail rate. Therefore, the sector had a cumulative increase of 8.2% in the year.  The cumulative index in the last twelve months, which has decreased since April 2018, rose 7.5%, with a slight increase in relation to the result of January (7.3%).

Pharmaceuticals, medical and orthopedic articles, toiletries and cosmetics, with an increase of 10.1% in sales against February 2018, accounted for the second biggest contribution to the overall retail trade rate, recording the second positive change in a row, against the same month in the previous year. Despite that basic and continuous nature of this sector, the fall of prices of pharmaceuticals is a relevant factor accounting for the performance of the sector.  This year, the segment recorded the highest rate (8.6%) among trade activities. The cumulative index in the last 12 months changed from 6.0% up to January to 6.4% up to February, having remained on an upward trend.

The sector of Hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products, beverages and tobacco, with an increase of 1.5% against February 2018, recorded the twenty-third positive rate in a row.  The segment accounted for the third major impact on the formation of the overall retail rate. The performance of this activity has been benefited by the stability of the usual real wage bill. In the first two months of 2019, the segment had a cumulative increase of 1.9%, versus the same period in 2018; nevertheless, the analysis by the cumulative index in 12 months, which had an increase of 3.6%, evidences reduction in the pace of increase since August 2018 (4.8%).

The sector of Fabric, apparel and footwear, with an increase of 10.7% against February 2018, interrupted two consecutive months of negative rates and recorded the highest rate since September 2017 (12.5%), partially due to the calendar effect. It is also worth mentioning the contribution resulting from the fall of apparel prices. The cumulative index in the year stayed at 4.1%, interrupting a sequence of 12 months with negative rates.  As a result, the cumulative index in the last 12 months changed from -1.7% in  January to -0.8% in February, with a lower pace of decrease, but still negative.

The sector of Office, computer and communication material and equipment had an increase of 2.9% against February 2018, with a cumulative index in the year of 2.2%. Nevertheless, the cumulative index in 12 months (-0.4%) increased its pace against January (-0.2%).

Fuels and lubricants increased by 3.0% in terms of volume of sales against February 2018, the third positive rate in a row.  The fall of prices below inflation rates has been a positive contribution to the sector. As a result, the cumulative rate in the year stood at 2.2%. The cumulative index over the last 12 months remained negative (-3.8%), though signaling a recovery since November 2018 (-5.5%).

The sales of Furniture and household appliances increased 2.7% against February 2018, after recording decreases (-5.3% in December and -2.8% in January) in previous months. The cumulative index in the year points to slight decrease (-0.3%) versus that in the same period of 2018. In the last 12 months, having changed from -1.9% up to January to -2.0% up to February, it was practically stable in February and has kept decelerating since April (9.6%).

The activity Books, newspapers, magazines and stationery decreased 24.3% against February 2018.  That behavior was mainly due to the reduced number of physical shops. The cumulative index in the year fell by 26.8%. The cumulative index in 12 months chanhged from -17.7% up to January to -19.6% up to February and has remained negative since March 2014 (-0.2%), contributing to the downward trend initiated in April 2018 (-5.2%).

The sector of Vehicles, motorcycles, parts and pieces increased 19.4% in relation to February 2018, the twenty-second positive rate in a row. As a result, the sector had a cumulative increase of 13.7% in the year. The cumulative index in 12 months (14.3%) recorded stability in relation to January, thus keeping the path of recovery observed since July 2016 (-17.8%).

With an increase of 9.3% in relation to February 2018, the segment of Construction material recorded increase for the second consecutive year, after a negative result in December (-0.6%). In the cumulative index in the year, the rate was 5.5 %. The cumulative index in the last 12 months, having changed from 3.1% in January to 3.4% in February, accelerated and interrupted the downward trend initiated in May 2018. 

Trade sales fall in 15 of the 27 Federation Units

From January to February 2019, in the seasonally-adjusted series, the sales of retail trade were stable, with a predominance of negative results in 15 of the 27 Federation Units. The highlights were Paraná (-1.5%), Federal District (-1.1%) and Piaui (-1.1%). Negative contributions came from  12 of the 27 Federation Units, the main ones being: Tocantins (8.9%), Espírito Santo (5.0%) and Sergipe (2.6%).

In the same comparison, extended retail trade fell 0.8%. There were decreases in 14 of the 27 Federation Units surveyed, mainly in: Acre (-2.2%), Federal District (-1.7%) and Minas Gerais (-1.3%). The positive contributions came from 13 of the 27 Federation Units, with highlight to: Tocantins (4.8%), Amapá (4.2%) and Bahia (1.2%).

Against February 2018, the change in volume of sales of retail trade was 3.9%, with a prediminance of positive results in 22 of the 27 Federation Units, the main highlights being: Espírito Santo (12.6%), Acre (9.0%) and Pará (8.2%). The negative contributions came from five Federation Units, the main highlights being Piauí (-6.8%), Roraima (-3.0%) and Paraná (-1.8%). As for the participation in the composition of the overall retail trade rate, the highlights were São Paulo (4.9%), Rio de Janeiro (4.2%) and Santa Catarina (6.8%).

In comparison with February 2018, the increase of 7.7% in sales in extented retail trade was observed in 26 of the 27 Federation Units, with highlight to Mato Grosso (12,1%), Goiás (11,3%) and Pará (10.8%). The only decrease was registered in Roraima (-0.8%).  The main contributions to the extended retail trade rate came from São Paulo (8.6%), Rio Grande do Sul (9.6%) and Santa Catarina (9.9%).