Argentina: SME retail sales growth rate 2024, by month

Throughout 2023, the Argentinian retail sector suffered an overall decline in sales volume compared to the same periods of the previous year. March saw a 0.8 percent drop in sales of small and medium-sized retailers, whereas in September SME retail sales declined 5.1 percent. The biggest drops have been recorded in December 2023 and January 2024, with a decrease of 13.7 and 28.5 percent compared to the previous year. Although a larger drop occured in June 2024, the retail sales growth rate increased by 2.9 percent in October 2024.

What do consumers in Argentina care about?

In 2024, a survey revealed that inflation overwhelmingly stood out as the primary concern for Argentinians, with almost 60 percent of adult respondents identifying it as one of the key issues affecting the country. It far outranked other problems such as poverty, which was selected by just 28 percent of respondents. Food and non-alcoholic beverages were among the hardest-hit sectors, recording a year-on-year inflation rate of 133.5 percent in August 2023.

Argentina’s economy

Argentina is the eighth largest country in the world and boasts the third-largest economy in Latin America. The country’s gross domestic product (GDP) stood at around 620 billion U.S. dollars in 2023, and is forecasted to continuously increase between 2023 and 2028 by a total of 106.2 billion dollars. Argentina’s wholesale and retail trade industry is the second-largest contributor to the country’s GDP, adding 90 billion Argentinian pesos of gross value to the Argentinian GDP in 2022. It trailed behind the manufacturing industry, which was the largest contributor at nearly 109 billion pesos. That same year, the country recorded a positive trade balance of goods for the fourth consecutive year, with a trade surplus amounting to around 6.92 U.S. dollars.