Sales of building materials have 8.9% drop

Sales of building materials had 8.9% drop in January compared with the same month in 2016, according to the Brazilian Association of the Industry of building materials (Abramat). Compared to December, there was growth of 1.5%.
Jobs in the industry showed a fall, with retraction of 7.5% in January compared to January 2016. Compared to December, 0.1% decline was recorded.
The base and finishing segments also presented 11.4% indentation and 5.3%, respectively, in January over the same month of 2016. In comparison with December, there was an increase in sales of base (0.7%) and finishing (2.7%).
According to the President of Abramat, Walter Cover, the forecast for the first half is of sales, but with gradual improvement in the remainder of the year.