Stone sees biggest decline of the year in retail sales in September by Reuters

SAO PAULO (Reuters) – Brazilian retail sales in September fell 1.9% from the same period a year ago and fell 2.4% from August, the sector’s worst performance of the year, according to a survey by payment media company Stone (Nasdaq). 🙂 Released this Thursday.

The data came two days after rival Cielo (BVMF:) noted that retail sales last month fell 3.3% from a year earlier, discounting inflation.

According to figures from Stone, which calculates sector performance on a monthly basis based on merchants approved on its platform, the eight sectors analyzed saw a monthly decline, led by furniture, home appliances, books, newspapers, magazines and stationery, both with a decline of 3.5%.

“September’s result is the worst for retail this year, and the second decline in the past four months,” said Matthews Calveley, a research economist and data scientist at Stone. “Therefore, although there is an overall decline, the fluctuations in recent months make the outlook for the rest of the year uncertain,” he added.

In the third quarter as a whole, retail sales fell 0.9% compared to the immediately preceding three months, according to data from Stone. Compared to the third quarter of 2023, there was a 1% growth in sales.

In the quarterly comparison, only two of the eight sectors calculated by the company showed positive performance in the months from July to September: fuels and lubricants (2.6%) and fabrics, clothing and footwear (0.8%).

In contrast, the “Other items for personal and household use” sector decreased by 2%, followed by pharmaceutical goods (-1.8%), books, newspapers, magazines and stationery (-1.3%), hypermarkets, supermarkets and food items. Products, beverages and tobacco (-0.9%), furniture and household appliances (-0.6%), and building materials (-0.5%).