LatinNews Daily - 17 June 2009

Brazil: Retail sales posted a weaker-than-expected result of -0.2% month-on-month in April over March, while they grew 6.9% year-on-year, boosted by an extra working day in April 2009. In the seasonally adjusted series, just two of the eight sectors posted growth: food, drink and tobacco (+0.8%), and IT and telecoms equipment (+8.9%). In the accumulated year to date, retail sales rose 4.5%.