Brazilian retail trade drops 0.8% in July influenced by 'hangover' from the World Cup

Brazilian retail trade fell 0.8% from June to July, influenced by a kind of “hangover” from the World Cup. The result causes the sector's accumulated performance in the 12-month period to slow down to 1.6%.

The quarterly moving average, which smooths specific fluctuations and reflects the recent trend, points to a negative variation of 0.1%.

In 2026, the sector grew 1.8%, and in 12 months, 1.2%. The numbers indicate a slowdown, since, in March, the 12-month accumulated figure was 2.3%.

The data is part of the Monthly Trade Survey (PMC), released this Tuesday (15) by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE).

The July result places Brazilian trade 10.6% above the pre-covid-19 pandemic level (February 2020) and 1.5% below the highest level ever recorded, reached in March 2026.

According to research analyst, Cristiano Santos, trade is at a level equivalent to December 2025.

Behavior

The survey shows that of the eight activities surveyed by IBGE, five showed a decline from June to July.

See the behavior of activity groups:

furniture and household appliances: -4.9%;

books, newspapers, magazines and stationery: -4.2%;

fabrics, clothing and footwear: -2.7%;

other articles for personal and domestic use: -2.2%;

hypermarkets, supermarkets, food products, drinks and tobacco: -0.2%;

pharmaceutical, medical, orthopedic and perfumery articles: 0.6%;

office, IT and communication equipment and material: 0.6%;

fuels and lubricants: 0.3%.

Cristiano Santos explains that the drop in household appliances, magazines and stationery, and clothing is related to the World Cup, which took place in June and July, since sales of items such as TVs and sticker albums grew in the months prior to the World Cup, increasing the comparison base for July.

“It’s as if people had concentrated their consumption capacity for these products related to the World Cup, especially in May.”

In 12 months, sales of furniture and household appliances increased by 3.9%.

"Everyone who was going to buy a television took advantage of the fact that there was a World Cup and bought it in May", explains Santos.

Wholesale

In expanded retail trade, which includes wholesale activities – vehicles, motorcycles, parts and pieces; building material; and food products, beverages and tobacco – the indicator rose 0.4% from June to July and marks a positive variation of 1.2% in the 12-month period.