The data from the CNCS show an average increase of 1.7% in real terms, although it depends on the area of Uruguay.
The sales of the Commerce and Services sector in the first quarter of this year registered an average increase of 1.7% in real terms (discounted inflation) compared to the same period last year, as reported by the National Chamber of Commerce and Services (CNCS) in their quarterly survey. Thus, a slight acceleration is observed after two quarters of growth below 1%.
The figures show important variations according to the type of property and geographical location of the shops Of the 19 items surveyed, 13 registered falls in actual sales year-on-year, illustrating the high heterogeneity in performance within the sector.
The sectors that had improvements in their sales were travel agencies, toy stores, clothing stores, convenience stores, advertising agencies, and supermarkets. The rest of the items (among them household appliance stores, sweet shops, household items stores, barracks, etc.) had falls in their sales.
In the supermarket sector, sales grew 3.2% year-on-year in the first quarter, despite the fact that only 40% of the companies in this sector had increases in sales.
Low on the coast
When analyzing sales according to the location of the companies, the increase was similar between Montevideo and the rest of the territory (both with a 1.7% increase). However, when differentiating regions such as the east coast and the coast, important differences can be seen. Indeed, on the coast sales rose 4.2 percent year-on-year while on the coast they fell 7.4%, undoubtedly reflecting the impact of the exchange difference with Argentina.
In the short term, businessmen in the Commerce and Services sector show a deterioration in their expectations regarding the performance of the sector. Only 36% of businessmen foresee an improvement in their sales in the second quarter, a figure lower than that of the previous survey.
Source: Ambito
