Volume of services retreats 1.2% in March
May 15, 2026 09h00 AM | Last Updated: May 18, 2026 02h30 PM
In the seasonally-adjusted series, volume of services fell 1.2% in March 2026 over the immediately previous month, after remaining stable (0.0%) in February 2026. Therefore, the services sector was 18.2% above the level of February 2020 (pre-pandemic) and stands, in March 2026, 1.7% below the peak of the time series, reached in October 2025. Compared to March 2025, volume of services grew 3.0%, its 24th consecutive positive result. The cumulative index from January to March this year was 2.3%, compared to the same period in 2025. The cumulative rate in the last 12 months was 2.8%, maintaining the pace of expansion compared to that observed in February (2.8%) and marked the least intense rate since October 2024 (2.7%).
Indicators of the Monthly Survey of Services
Brazil - March 2026
| Period | Change (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Volume | Nominal Revenue | |
| March 26 / February 26* | -1.2 | -0.6 |
| March 26 / March 25 | 3.0 | 8.5 |
| Cumulative January-March | 2.3 | 6.8 |
| Cumulative in the last 12 months | 2.8 | 7.4 |
| Source: IBGE, Diretoria de Pesquisas, Coordenação de Estatísticas Conjunturais em Empresas *seasonally-adjusted series |
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The decline in volume of services (-1.2%), from February to March 2026, was followed by all five dissemination activities investigated, with emphasis on transportation (-1.7%), which offset the gain accumulated in the first two months of the year (0.8%). The other falls observed this month came from professional, administrative and complementary services (-1.1%), information and communication (-0.9%), other services (-2.0%) and services rendered to families (-1.5%), with the first sector accumulating a loss of 2.3% in the last four months; the second one returning part of the increase accumulated in the previous three months (2.8%); the third one accumulating a loss of 2.4% in the last two months; and the last one completely offsetting the expansion recorded in the previous month (1.1%).
Still in the seasonally adjusted series, the evolution of the quarterly moving average index for the total volume of services showed a negative change (-0.4%) in the quarter ended in March 2026 compared to the immediately previous quarter. Among the sectors, three out of five activities also showed negative behavior, with emphasis on professional, administrative and complementary services (-0.7%); followed by transportation (-0.3%); and for services rendered to families (-0.3%). In the opposite direction, other services (0.3%) and information and communication (0.2%) showed advances in this type of indicator.
In comparison with March 2025, volume of the services sector expanded by 3.0% in March 2026, the 24th positive result in a row. This month's advance was followed by four out of five dissemination activities and saw a growth in 51.8% of the 166 types of services investigated.
Among the sectors, information and communication (7.9%) exerted the main positive impact, driven mainly by the increase in telecommunications revenue; consulting in information technology; open TV; portals, content providers and other information services on the Internet; and data processing, application service providers and Internet hosting services. The other advances came from transportation (2.0%); professional, administrative and complementary services (1.1%); and other services (2.7%), largely explained by the greater revenue from cargo road transportation; mass road transportation; maritime and port support navigation; and highway concessionaires, in the first sector; and business intermediation in general through applications or e-commerce platforms; legal activities; surveillance and private security activities; cleaning in buildings and homes; and engineering services, in the second one; and securities brokerages; management of stock exchange and organized over-the-counter markets; and auxiliary activities for insurance, supplementary pensions and health insurance plans, in the latter one. Conversely, services rendered to families (-1.6%) exerted the only negative impact, pressured, to a large extent, by lower revenue from hotels.
Monthly Survey of Services
Indicators of Volume of Services, according to dissemination activities
March 2026 - Change (%)
| Dissemination Activities | Month/Previous month (1) | Monthly (2) | Cumulative in the year (3) | Last 12 months (4) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JAN | FEB | MAR | JAN | FEB | MAR | JAN-JAN | JAN-FEB | JAN-MAR | Up to JAN | Up to FEB | Up to MAR | |
| Volume of Services - Brazil | -0.1 | 0.0 | -1.2 | 3.2 | 0.4 | 3.0 | 3.2 | 1.8 | 2.3 | 3.1 | 2.8 | 2.8 |
| 1. Services rendered to families | -0.4 | 1.1 | -1.5 | 2.3 | 4.3 | -1.6 | 2.3 | 3.2 | 1.6 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 1.1 |
| 1.1 Lodging and food services | -0.3 | 1.1 | -1.2 | 2.1 | 4.5 | -1.7 | 2.1 | 3.2 | 1.5 | 1.6 | 1.9 | 1.4 |
| 1.1.1 Lodging | - | - | - | -0.4 | 8.3 | -13.2 | -0.4 | 3.2 | -2.4 | 2.5 | 3.6 | 1.4 |
| 1.1.2 Feeding | - | - | - | 3.0 | 3.3 | 1.9 | 3.0 | 3.2 | 2.7 | 1.3 | 1.4 | 1.4 |
| 1.2 Other services rendered to families | -5.6 | 0.3 | -2.2 | 3.8 | 3.2 | -0.9 | 3.8 | 3.5 | 2.0 | -0.6 | -0.3 | -0.3 |
| 2. Information and communication services | 0.8 | 0.8 | -0.9 | 6.5 | 4.3 | 7.9 | 6.5 | 5.4 | 6.3 | 5.6 | 5.2 | 5.5 |
| 2.1 Information and communication technology services (ICT) | 0.7 | 0.5 | -0.9 | 6.6 | 4.0 | 6.7 | 6.6 | 5.3 | 5.8 | 6.2 | 5.7 | 5.9 |
| 2.1.1 Telecommunications | 0.0 | 0.2 | -0.6 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 3.3 | 1.5 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
| 2.1.2 Information technology services | 3.1 | 0.6 | -1.7 | 11.8 | 8.0 | 10.0 | 11.8 | 9.9 | 9.9 | 12.4 | 11.6 | 11.6 |
| 2.2 Audiovisual services | 2.8 | 2.2 | 2.4 | 6.3 | 7.3 | 17.5 | 6.3 | 6.8 | 10.4 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 2.4 |
| 3. Professional, administrative and complementary services | -0.6 | -0.2 | -1.1 | 3.5 | 0.5 | 1.1 | 3.5 | 2.0 | 1.7 | 3.0 | 2.7 | 2.6 |
| 3.1 Technical-professional services | 1.5 | 2.3 | -4.1 | 6.5 | 3.5 | 5.2 | 6.5 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 4.8 |
| 3.2 Administrative and complementary services | 0.9 | -1.3 | -1.5 | 1.4 | -1.7 | -2.0 | 1.4 | -0.2 | -0.8 | 2.0 | 1.4 | 0.9 |
| 3.2.1 Non-real estate rentals | -0.9 | -0.4 | -3.5 | 0.7 | -0.2 | -7.3 | 0.7 | 0.3 | -2.4 | -0.2 | -0.6 | -1.8 |
| 3.2.2 Support services to business activities | 1.6 | -2.8 | 1.0 | 1.6 | -2.2 | -0.2 | 1.6 | -0.3 | -0.3 | 2.7 | 2.1 | 1.9 |
| 4. Transportation, support activities for transportation and mailing | 0.3 | 0.4 | -1.7 | 1.2 | -2.5 | 2.0 | 1.2 | -0.6 | 0.3 | 2.6 | 2.2 | 2.3 |
| 4.1 Land transportation | -1.3 | 1.5 | -0.9 | 2.1 | 0.6 | 5.1 | 2.1 | 1.4 | 2.7 | 2.0 | 2.1 | 2.7 |
| 4.1.1 Road cargo transportation | - | - | - | 2.8 | 0.9 | 5.8 | 2.8 | 1.8 | 3.2 | 2.7 | 2.8 | 3.4 |
| 4.1.2 Road mass transportation | - | - | - | -0.8 | -0.6 | 10.0 | -0.8 | -0.7 | 2.9 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 1.6 |
| 4.1.3 Other segments of road transportation | - | - | - | 4.1 | 1.1 | -3.1 | 4.1 | 2.6 | 0.4 | 2.0 | 2.1 | 1.5 |
| 4.2 Water transportation | 1.7 | -0.4 | -1.0 | -2.5 | -9.1 | -5.2 | -2.5 | -5.9 | -5.7 | 1.0 | -0.2 | -1.3 |
| 4.3 Air transportation | 4.7 | -9.1 | -7.1 | 20.1 | -10.2 | -9.1 | 20.1 | 5.2 | 0.5 | 16.3 | 13.4 | 11.9 |
| 4.4 Storage services, support activities for transportation and mailing activities | 3.2 | 1.1 | 0.1 | -6.3 | -5.0 | 0.5 | -6.3 | -5.7 | -3.6 | -0.5 | -1.0 | -1.3 |
| 5. Other services | 3.2 | -0.4 | -2.0 | 1.9 | -2.8 | 2.7 | 1.9 | -0.4 | 0.6 | -0.1 | -0.4 | 0.1 |
| 5.1 Sewage, waste management, material recovery and decontamination | - | - | - | 0.6 | -1.9 | 0.5 | 0.6 | -0.6 | -0.3 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 0.2 |
| 5.2 Support activities of the financial services | - | - | - | 3.1 | -3.7 | 3.6 | 3.1 | -0.3 | 1.0 | -0.1 | -0.4 | 0.2 |
| 5.3 Real estate activities | - | - | - | -0.6 | -3.3 | 2.6 | -0.6 | -1.9 | -0.4 | -0.7 | -1.0 | -0.9 |
| 5.4 Other services not previously specified | - | - | - | -2.8 | 3.6 | 0.1 | -2.8 | 0.5 | 0.3 | -1.0 | -0.3 | 0.1 |
| Source: IBGE, Diretoria de Pesquisas, Coordenação de Estatísticas Conjunturais em Empresas (1) Base: immediately previous month - with seasonal adjustment (2) Base: same month in the previous year (3) Base: same period in the previous year (4) Base: 12 previous months |
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In the cumulative index from January to March 2026, compared to the same period of the previous year, the services sector showed an expansion of 2.3%, with all five dissemination activities showing positive rates and a growth of 48.2% in the 166 types of services investigated. Among the sectors, the most important positive contribution came from the information and communication sector (6.3%), largely driven by the increase in revenues of companies operating in the segments of information technology consultancy; data processing, application service providers and Internet hosting services; portals, content providers and other information services on the Internet; and development of custom computer programs.
The other advances came from professional, administrative and complementary services (1.7%); services rendered to families (1.6%); transportation, auxiliary services for transportation and mailing (0.3%) and other services (0.6%), explained, above all, by the increase in revenue from companies that act as business intermediaries in general through applications or e-commerce platforms; agencying of advertisement; legal activities; cleaning in buildings and homes; and rental of temporary workforce, in the first sector; catering, buffet and other prepared food services; restaurants; production and promotion of sporting events; and language teaching, in the second one; road cargo transportation; mass road transportation; and highway concessionaires, in the third one; and securities brokerages; management of stock exchange and organized over-the-counter markets; and collection of non-hazardous waste, in the last one.
Volume of services falls in 13 out of 27 Federation Units
Regionally, the smallest part of the Federation Units (13 out of 27) registered a decline in volume of services in March 2026, compared to the immediately previous month, despite the decline observed in the result for Brazil (-1.2%) – seasonally adjusted series. Among the places that recorded negative rates, the most important impact came from São Paulo (-2.1%), followed by Mato Grosso (-5.2%), Pernambuco (-3.9%) and Mato Grosso do Sul (-6.0%). On the other hand, Federal District (10.3%) and Rio de Janeiro (1.8%) exerted the main positive contributions of the month, followed by Santa Catarina (2.7%), Paraná (0.3%), Rio Grande do Norte (2.1%) and Alagoas (2.5%).
In comparison with March 2025, the expansion in volume of services in Brazil (3.0%) was followed by 14 out of 27 Federation Units. The most important positive contribution came from São Paulo (4.0%), followed by Rio de Janeiro (5.2), Federal District (16.2%), Rio Grande do Sul (3.5%) and Santa Catarina (3.4%). In the opposite direction, Bahia (-2.9%) led the month's losses, followed by Ceará (-3.3%), Amazonas (-3.9%), Mato Grosso (-2.1%) and Goiás (-2.0%).
In the cumulative index of the first quarter of 2026, compared to the same period of the previous year, the increase in volume of services in Brazil (2.3%) occurred in a widespread manner among the places investigated, as 15 out of 27 Federation Units also showed an expansion in real revenue from services. The main positive impact occurred in São Paulo (4.4%), followed by the Federal District (11.2%), Mato Grosso (10.8%), Santa Catarina (0.5%) and Rondônia (7.7%). On the other hand, Minas Gerais (-1.6%) recorded the most important negative influence on the national index, followed by Ceará (-4.7%), Paraná (-1.0%) and Rio de Janeiro (-0.3%).
Tourism activities fall 4.0% in March
In March 2026, the tourism activity index showed a decline of 4.0% compared to the immediately previous month, the second negative result in a row, a period in which it accumulated a loss of 5.4%. As a result, the segment of tourism was 6.5% above the level of February 2020 and operated, in March 2026, 6.3% below the peak of its time series, reached in December 2024. Regionally, 14 out of 17 places surveyed followed this downward trend in the national tourism activity (-4.0%). The most relevant negative influence came from São Paulo (-6.3%), followed by Rio de Janeiro (-2.4%), Bahia (-5.3%), Pernambuco (-9.2%) and Minas Gerais (-2.8%). In the opposite direction, Rio Grande do Sul (1.4%) led tourism gains this month, followed by Rio Grande do Norte (1.3%) and Goiás (0.4%).
In comparison with March 2025, the index of volume of tourism activities in Brazil decreased by 3.9%, after having recorded two consecutive months of positive rates. This month, it was mainly pressured by the drop in revenue of companies operating in the sectors of air passenger transportation; hotels; and car rental. In regional terms, 11 out of 17 Federation Units where the indicator is investigated showed a drop in services aimed at tourism, with a highlight to São Paulo (-3.1%), followed by Bahia (-11.3%), Minas Gerais (-8.1%), Pernambuco (-12.9%), Santa Catarina (-10.2%) and Ceará (-11.6%). On the other hand, Rio Grande do Norte (7.3%) exerted the main positive impact of the month, followed by Espírito Santo (4.6%) and Rio Grande do Sul (1.3%).
In the cumulative index for the first quarter of 2026, the special aggregate of tourism activities showed an expansion of 0.9% compared to the same period last year, driven, above all, by the increases in revenue obtained by companies in the sectors of catering, buffet and prepared food services; restaurants; reservation services relating to accommodation; and air passenger transportation. Regionally, ten out of 17 places investigated also recorded positive rates, with gains coming from Rio de Janeiro (8.4%) and São Paulo (1.6%), followed by Bahia (1.7%), Rio Grande do Norte (6.8%) and Amazonas (5.4%). Conversely, Minas Gerais (-6.9%) led tourism losses, followed by Santa Catarina (-6.4%), Pernambuco (-3.6%) and Paraná (-2.6%).
Passenger and cargo transportation declines in March
In March 2026, volume of passenger transportation fell 3.4% compared to the immediately previous month, in the series without seasonal influences, the second negative rate in a row, a period in which it accumulated a loss of 4.3%. Therefore, in this reference month, the segment was 1.7% above the level of February 2020 (pre-pandemic) and 22.1% below February 2014 (highest point in the time series). In turn, volume of cargo transportation decreased by 1.0% in March 2026, after having grown by 0.8% in the previous month. Therefore, the segment was 5.1% below the highest point in its time series (July 2023). In relation to the pre-pandemic level, cargo transportation was 37.1% above February 2020.
Compared to the same month a year ago, without seasonal adjustment, passenger transportation grew 2.8% in March 2026, after falling 4.0% in the previous month; while cargo transportation showed a growth of 2.5% in the same type of comparison.
In the cumulative indicator for the first quarter of this year, passenger transportation showed an expansion of 2.3% compared to the same period in 2025, while cargo transportation increased 1.4% in the same period investigated.
