Brazilian e-Commerce Sales Skyrocketed 87% in October

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazilian e-commerce sales grew by 87% in October compared to last year, according to SpendingPulse macroeconomic indicator, from the North American giant Mastercard. The survey considers general purchases, conducted using various types of payment, including cash and checks.

The average growth of e-commerce in the country, which was boosted by the pandemic, reached 84.5% in the past three months (August-October), compared to the same period last year. The pace exceeds that recorded in the third quarter, which stood at 81.5%.

“Consumer behavior in this pandemic has changed, now online commerce is part of daily life and customers’ life,” says Cesar Fukushima, director of Advanced Analysis at Mastercard in Brazil.

“That’s why, as much as consumer confidence has dropped in the month, we saw a growth on both channels – on traditional retail and online,” he adds, mentioning as driving factors the reduction of social isolation and the social benefits paid during the pandemic.

The total sales volume increased by 10.9% in October compared to the same period last year. In this sample, the motor vehicles, building materials, restaurants and accommodation sectors are not considered. The average of the past three months had an increase of 6% over the same period last year, above the third quarter, with growth of 3.3%.

On retail in general, four sectors pushed growth in October. These are supermarkets, furniture and household appliances, pharmaceutical articles and personal and household articles. On the other end, the clothing and fuel categories performed below retail as a whole.

When analyzing October sales in Brazilian regions, the North (18.8%), Northeast (12.3%) and South (11.4%) showed an above average increase. On the other hand, the Southeast (8.9%) and Midwest (4.2%) fell below the growth reported by retail, compared to the same period last year.