THE service sector grew 0.1% from July to August, reaching a series of seven consecutive months of increases, in which it accumulated expansion of 2.6%. The result places the segment – which brings together activities such as transport, tourism, restaurants, beauty salons and information technology – at the highest level ever recorded, renewing the record that had been reached in July.
The seven-month sequence of expansion is the longest since the period between February and September 2022. At the time, growth totaled 5.6%.
In the 12 months up to August 2025, services – the sector that employs the most in the economy – showed growth of 3.1%. Compared to August last year, there was an increase of 2.5%.
The data is part of the Monthly Service Surveyreleased this Tuesday (14) by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE).
August data places the segment at a level 18.7% above the pre-covid-19 pandemic period (February 2020).
According to the research manager, Rodrigo Lobo, “the reading is of a services sector that remains resilient, strong, that renews the historical series”.
High in four out of five activities
Of the five activities surveyed by IBGE, four showed an increase from July to August:
– Services provided to families: 1%
– Professional and administrative services: 0.4%
– Transport, storage and mail: 0.2%
– Other services: 0.6
– Information and communication services: 0.5%
The IBGE survey points to professional, administrative and complementary services as the main positive impact of August. The activity was driven by companies operating in the area of loyalty programs and discount cards, legal activities and rental of machines and equipment.
In the case of transport, the segment responsible for the second biggest impact of growth, the expansion is explained by the performance of public road passenger transport, rail freight transport, logistics and pipeline transport. Part of the leading role of transport is explained by the good moment in agriculture, which demands transport of the harvest.
The group services provided to families was positively influenced by restaurant activities, buffet services and hotels. The others segment was pushed up by ancillary financial services.
The research manager points out that the only group that showed a decline – information and communication – had the result explained by the high basis of comparison, which affected film exhibition and distribution, since July was a holiday month.
However, Lobo highlights that, throughout the year, the information and communication group is one of the engines that boosted services, a behavior that is also repeated in the post-pandemic period.
Tourist activity index
The Monthly Services Survey also includes the tourist activities index (Iatur), which rose 0.8% in August, compared to the previous month. In relation to August 2024, there was an increase of 4.6%.
The tourism segment is 11.5% above the pre-pandemic level and 2% below the highest point in the historical series, in December 2024.
Iatur brings together 22 of the 166 service activities investigated in the research and which are linked to tourist activity, such as hotels, travel agencies and air passenger transport.
Information is published from 17 Federation units: Ceará, Pernambuco, Bahia, Minas Gerais, Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Paraná, Santa Catarina, Rio Grande do Sul, Goiás, Distrito Federal, Amazonas, Pará, Mato Grosso, Alagoas and Rio Grande do Norte.
