The official program will extend until the end of the year. More than 165 firms have already committed to not making increases above what was established. Commerce seeks to guarantee that there are no shortages in the face of a possible new wave of consumption ahead of the runoff.
The Government and companies from different sectors will renew the program until the end of the year Fair Prices. As Ámbito learned, there are already about 165 signatures mass consumption, white goods, widespread supplies, clothing and footwear, among others, who committed to respect the 5% cap in monthly increments. The Secretariat of Commerce places special emphasis on protecting supplies of food, drinks and cleaning and personal hygiene products.
With just over two weeks left until the second round, Sergio Massa seeks to close the pending list to arrive at the electoral contest with as little noise as possible. The fuel shortage that was recorded since last week was a warning sign. Although at the close of this edition, qualified sources from the sector told Ámbito that the situation is beginning to normalize, especially in the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area.
Despite the wave of consumption that was reflected in long lines in supermarkets during the hours before the first round, there were no significant stock shortages in mass consumption products. Looking ahead to November 19, it is one of the points that the Government seeks to protect. For this reason, in the 276 meetings that the Ministry of Commerce held with companies for the renewal of Fair Prices, it was requested to place special emphasis on supply.
Supermarket sources explained to Ámbito that due to the price differential with other channels “there is a constant increase in demand” and they acknowledged that their Suppliers are “making an effort to maintain acceptable supply levels”. The most sensitive difficulties are found in products whose harvest was seriously affected by weather conditions, such as rice.
However, the Government has already obtained the endorsement of 165 companies from different sectors to cap the increases at 5% per month. Firms of mass consumption, clothing, footwear, general supplies, white goods, electronics, construction materials and cell phones, among others, will accompany the renewal of the Fair Prices program until December 31.
“We are going to accompany the program with supply, but our costs are rising on the order of 10% per month and a 5% limit is placed on the increases, which makes our equation too difficult,” said the representative of a major food manufacturer. . The Government took note and They enabled a new round of talks for after the election.
The Fair Prices program seeks to function as an anchor for expectations in a context in which inflation ran above double digits in the latest INDEC records. According to the survey published by the Secretariat of Economic Programming, led by Gabriel Rubinstein, prices moved on average at a rate of 8% in the last four weeks.
Source: Ambito
