Sales in supermarkets during August decreased by 10.1% compared to the same month last year, according to the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (Indec). Despite this, they experienced a slight increase of 0.2% compared to July, which helped reduce the accumulated loss for the year to 1.5%.
Sales were distributed as follows: 46.2% were made using credit cards, driven by promotions; 27.3% via debit; 17.4% in cash; and the remaining 9.1% using other payment methods. As for wholesale supermarkets, sales in August showed a decrease of 15.1% compared to the same month last year but increased by 2.2% compared to July, accumulating a decline of 13.5% so far this year.
On the other hand, in shopping malls, sales increased by 5.3% compared to the previous year; however, they decreased by 10.6% compared to July. Additionally, there was an increase in implicit prices of 3.9% month-on-month. These results reflect that consumption in these establishments has declined by 10.9% so far this year.
Indec previously reported that overall economic activity contracted by 3.8% during August, while consumption in wholesalers and retailers decreased by 7.9%. In summary, the economic outlook regarding retail and wholesale sales presents a challenging picture, with figures reflecting a decline in consumption throughout the year.
