Brazil Retail Sales Unexpectedly Rise
2026-03-11 12:15
By
Andre Joaquim
1 min. read
Retail sales in Brazil rose by 0.4% from the previous month in January of 2026, erasing the 0.4% drop in the previous month and contrasting with the median market forecasts of a 0.1% decrease.
The release reflected some traction for Brazilian consumers after low private consumption negatively impacted the fourth-quarter GDP growth and forced the Brazilian central bank to signal the start of rate cuts in March.
Retail volumes were sharply higher for pharmaceutical and medical goods (2.6% vs -5% in December), clothing and footwear (1.8% vs -0.2%), and retail in supermarkets (0.4% vs -0.2%).
These offset the drop in books and stationery (-1.8% vs -2.3%) and office equipment (-9.3% vs 8%).
From the previous year, retail volumes were 2.8% higher from the 2.3% increase in December, a fifth consecutive acceleration.