Dados do Brasil

Brazil: Country Pulse

Country Pulse | 24 Aug 2015

Hot topics in August 2015: Wine sales defy economic downturn, Price hikes and

outages encourage consumers to conserve electricity and Family time trumps higher

earnings for most.

Wine sales defy economic downturn (August 2015)

Brazilian retail sales shrank at an annual rate of 2.2% in volume terms during the

first half of the year - their worst performance since 2003, according to official

statistics. However, one product is swimming against the tide - wine. During the

first half of the year, volume sales of wine rose 4.6%, according to data published

by trade group Ibravin. Oscal Lo of trade group Fecovinho claimed that a "wine

culture" was emerging in Brazil. However, he added that consumption in restaurants

was in decline. According to Euromonitor International data, per household volume

sales of wine in Brazil declined by 12.8%, to 6.2 litres, between 2009 and 2014.

Price hikes and outages encourage consumers to conserve

electricity (August 2015)

Brazilians were hit by a steep hike in the cost of electricity during the first half of

the year, making many more energy efficient in their habits - turning off the lights

and unplugging the TV when they go to bed, for example. This trend began during

the Southern Hemisphere summer after a prolonged drought in the southeast of the

country resulted in widespread blackouts (much of the country's electricity is

generated from hydro power). Sales of photovoltaic panels are also on the rise as a

growing number of households seek to generate their own electricity.

Family time trumps higher earnings for most (August 2015)

Brazil is very much a family-oriented society, and a survey conducted during May

by consultancy SPC Brasil has found that 69% of Brazilians would accept earning

less money if this meant they could spend more time with their families. Only 20%

said they would rather earn more at the expense of their family life. However,

among young adults, this figure rose to 28.4%. This survey also found that a

majority of Brazilians prefer experiences as a way to achieve happiness, rather than

consuming goods: Half of respondents said they would be willing to forgo buying

clothes in order to travel abroad.

The allure of chance (July 2015)

Lotteries and games of chance hold a very strong appeal for many Brazilians.

Regardless of age, gender or social class, millions of them seek out a 'lucky strike'

that will change the course of their lives. The country's biggest lotteries are Mega

Sena, Dupla Sena, Lotofácil, Quina, Lotomania and Timemania, while many clubs

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and offices host their own gambling events. According to Google Brasil, lottery

results are searched for four times more frequently than income tax and six times

more often than Neymar, the country's biggest football star. Search engines even

highlight the results of the country's major lotteries without having to enter their

official websites.

Will Brazilians warm to Chinese brands? (July 2015)

Aware that many local consumers mistrust Chinese-made products, Chinese mobile

phone manufacturer Xiaomi is not keen to highlight its origins. To this end, it hired

ex-Google executive Hugo Barra to be its face in the local market. Barra hosts

Apple-style launch events for Xiaomi's phones. An event held in São Paulo during

June was attended by around 1,500 people. Barra told Forbes magazine that

Xiaomi's fans were like supporters of an international soccer team, such as

Manchester United or Real Madrid. "The first thing that comes to mind when you

say 'Chinese' is inferior, probably counterfeit products - I would not buy them",

shopper Santa Ifigênia told the BBC in São Paulo.

Brazilian skiers invade Patagonia (July 2015)

More affluent consumers are travelling to Patagonian resorts in Chile and Argentina

for the skiing season this year. The Argentine city of Bariloche in Rio Negro province

is particularly popular in this regard, with local authorities referring to an 'avalanche'

of Brazilian tourists sweeping the region. According to online travel agency

Despegar.com, the number of Brazilian tourists travelling to Argentina and Chile for

the winter holidays is set to rise by 88% this year.

Economic slowdown drives growth in the ranks of 'super

debtors' (June 2015)

Interest payments on taxi driver Francisco Xavier's debts now account for half of

his income every month, news agency AP reports. Xavier is one of Brazil's 55 million

so-called 'super debtors',