Real retail sales in Colombia rose 11.7 percent in May 2026 according to DANE. Employed personnel grew 1.6 percent compared with the same month last year.
DANE published the results of the Monthly Commerce Survey for May. Eighteen lines of merchandise recorded positive variations, while only fuels for motor vehicles showed a decline.
The largest contributions to annual growth came from the motor vehicles and motorcycles lines, which added 4.0 percentage points. Between January and May real retail sales grew 11.9 percent.
The activities that most boosted the sector were sales of new motor vehicles, which rose 25.1 percent, and sales in establishments specialized in food, which varied 8.8 percent. Together these activities contributed 7.5 percentage points to the period's growth.