It is that the latest data available in this regard are not encouraging. According to the report prepared by the consulting firm Focus Market, in October mass consumption fell 11.1% in the year-on-year comparison to accumulate a contraction of 3.5% in the first ten months of the year.
“While mass consumption falls 4.3% in large commercial areas in October, it collapsed 11.1% in supermarkets of up to 500 square meters. Inflation is accelerating in Food, Beverages, Cleaning and Hygiene Items above the income of Argentine families”, said Damián Di Pace, director of Focus Market.
In addition, the analyst noted that “retail sales fell in the same month by 3.2%, according to the CAME”. “There is also not a good level of activity in sectors such as clothing and footwear, which have seen a drop in sales due to the acceleration of prices and loss of purchasing power,” remarked Di Pace, who added: “The Now 30 Plan finds Argentines without limits on the card to finance durable goods because many have used it to finance mass consumption purchases”.
perspectives
In this complex scenario, different sectors maintain a cautious expectation of a recovery in consumption for December, a month in which there is usually a rebound due to sales driven by the holidays.
“For us, December is the most anticipated month of the year.. The strongest in terms of sales. The expectations that consumption will reactivate are natural, typical of December. Let’s hope that all the contribution that there is in terms of salary bonuses and the Christmas bonus, which does not go to savings but to consumption, will help”, pointed out to Ámbito Víctor Palpacelli, president of the Argentine Federation of Supermarkets and Self-Services (FASA), who explained: “That is why, obviously, We are going to work with all the regional chains to improve sales strategies, trying to attract customers with special promotions.”.
In any case, Palpacelli clarified: “We know that December, in this case, is not going to be the month that is going to save us from the whole year. Because we have been losing a lot in the number of units sold in the year-on-year comparison throughout the year. So, we are not going to try to balance it. But it will help us.”
“The expectation is to have a December within all good. We know that we have a ceiling, which is due to the current purchasing power situation, but we hope to have at least a good December, ”he concluded.
On the other hand, the CAME retail sales index accumulates four consecutive months of decline in the year-on-year comparison. In fact, in October, 4 of the 6 surveyed items reduced their sales in the interannual comparison. “The only ones on the rise were ‘Pharmacy and perfumery’ and ‘Hardware stores, electrical and construction materials’, which have been registering the main sectoral dynamics. The largest fall is registered again in ‘Textile and clothing’, as a result of the increase in prices registered by this sector, which already accumulates approximately six negative year-on-year records, ”said the latest report from the entity.
Facing what may happen in December, the CAME pointed out to this newspaper that the “Projections are very cautious, given the macro situation.” “We hope that the staggered salary adjustments and the Fair Prices program will help to recover sales,” they remarked.
Source: Ambito
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