The SME retail sales They fell 7.3% annually in April, at constant prices, and accumulated a fall of 18.4% in the first four months of the year. In the seasonally adjusted monthly comparison, they rose 1.6%.
Retail trade continues to feel the declining dynamics of the purchasing power of consumerswho have cut expenses in all areas.
The only sector that came out of this trend is clothing and textile, favored for three reasons: due to the proliferation of offers; due to the very low base of comparison, since the industry has been very weakened since the pandemic; and due to the slowdown in prices in this particular item.
In the fourth month of the year, the return of interest-free installments could be observed in some local appliances and construction materialsAbove all, they helped improve sales.
This is how it arises from SME Retail Sales Index of the Argentine Confederation of Medium Enterprises (Came), prepared based on a monthly survey among 1,276 retail stores in the country, carried out on May 2 and 3.
In April, six of the seven items recorded year-on-year falls in your sales. The greatest annual contraction was detected in Perfumeries (-23.3%) and the only increase was in Textiles and clothing (+8.8%).
Food and drinks
In Food and drinkssales fell 8.5% annually in April, at constant prices and accumulate a drop of 23.8% in the first four months of the year compared to the same period in 2023. In the month-on-month comparison, they rose 2.7%.
Businesses in large cities consulted indicated that in April they lost sales in the hands of hypermarketswhich attracted the public with some very aggressive discounts.
In the neighborhood stores, the greatest demand was focused on alternative brandsseeking to make the food basket cheaper.
