Brazil: sales in malls grew 15.2% in January; Center-West and Northeast stand out

Sales in malls grew 15.2% in January this year, compared to the same month in 2022, and 0.6% compared to the pre-pandemic, the Brazilian Association of Shopping Centers (Abrasce) reported on Friday, Mar. 3.

In the division per region, the best results were in the shopping centers in the Midwest (+18.2%) and Northeast (+17.2%), while the worst were in the North (+6.5%).

The Southeast (+14.8%) and the South (+14%) were slightly below the national average.

The average ticket sales in the malls were R$119.68 in January, against R$86.39 for the street stores, according to data from the Abrasce Market Monitoring – Cielo Retail Index in Shopping Centers (ICVS-Abrasce).

The association says the frequenters also increased in January, contributing to positive sales.

The flow of people grew 19.3% year-on-year, according to IPEC and Mais Fluxo data – the highest monthly rate since July.

Glauco Humai, president of Abrasce, said in a note that the sector has been showing a consistent recovery from the losses of the pandemic.

He also said that the normalization of economic activity and the drop in unemployment had allowed greater mobility of people and mall sales.

“We closed 2022 with great results and started this year with a good performance. We estimate a sales growth of 14.6% throughout 2023. The increase in visitor flow in the malls is a positive sign for the beginning of the year,” said Humai.

With information from InfoMoney