Latin America Internet and Retail: LatAm Retail Headline Monitor: Anvisa Eases Medicine Delivery; Guarulhos Leads Logistics; Import Tax May Return

Research evidence excerpt

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11 Aug 2026 08:26:23 ET │ 9 pages

Latin America Internet and Retail

LatAm Retail Headline Monitor: Anvisa Eases Medicine Delivery;

Guarulhos Leads Logistics; Import Tax May Return

CITI'S TAKE

In this note, we summarize headlines/news with implications for our

coverage. We hope you find this useful.

João Pedro SoaresAC

Anvisa Allows Medicine Delivery Through Digital Platforms While Sales Regulation

Remains Pending⁠(08/10/2026, Mercado & Consumo)

Felipe Husein

Anvisa revoked measures that had prohibited medicine

n through

platforms including Mercado Livre, Shopee, iFood and Rappi following Law

15,357/2026, which allows licensed pharmacies and drugstores to contract digital

and e-commerce platforms for medicine logistics and delivery. Anvisa said the

revocation does not exempt companies from applicable sanitary requirements and

that implementation of medicine sales through these platforms remains subject to

regulation that the agency has yet to issue.

Citi's Take: The change does not yet amount to a full opening of the market.

Implementation of the new rule depends on specific regulations to be issued by

Anvisa, which will define how these operations may function. For now we do not

expect any changes in Meli’s pharma strategy, which remains 1P focused. Still, it is a

favorable sign that may eventually result in Meli carrying out its original plan of

operating as a market place for drugstores.

Guarulhos Overtakes Cajamar as São Paulo’s Logistics Hotspot (08/10/2026,

Pipeline)

Strong demand from e-commerce companies pushed Guarulhos ahead of Cajamar

in logistics warehouse absorption during 2Q26. According to Newmark, São Paulo

accounted for ~46% of Brazil’s net absorption in the quarter, concentrated mainly in

Guarulhos, Barueri and the ABC region, while state vacancy declined to ~5%.

Mercado Libre and Shopee remained key drivers of demand, absorbing 137k sqm

and 133k sqm, respectively, during the period, according to the article. Other

industry data similarly point to e-commerce as the main driver of logistics demand,

with MELI and Shopee among the largest occupiers.