Retail sales fall 1% in June after five months of growth

Retail sales fell by 1% in June this year, compared to the previous month. According to the Monthly Trade Survey conducted by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), the decline interrupted five consecutive months of increases, which culminated in a record in the historical series in May.

Despite the result, the accumulated gain compared to December 2023 reaches 4.7%. In the accumulated half-year, the increase is 5.2%, compared to the same period last year.

According to IBGE researchers, the drop from May to June can be explained by the rebound effect, that is, when there is a natural decline in sales volume immediately after strong growth.

Furthermore, the 2.1% drop in activities in the hypermarket, supermarket, food products, beverages and tobacco sectors and the 1.8% drop in other personal and household items also contributed to the decline in Brazilian retail sales in June.

According to the IBGE, the decline in these important retail sectors can be explained by inflationary pressure. Although the National Broad Consumer Price Index (IPCA) went from 0.46% in May to 0.21% in June, food and beverage prices rose 0.44% in the period and accounted for almost half of the month’s inflation.

Between May and June, 20 federative units showed negative performance in retail trade, with emphasis on Amapá (-8.7%), Bahia (-2.8%) and Tocantins (-2.7%).