The Rural Federation He complained to the government for dollar to 58 pesos and expressed their concern about what they called the “eternal return” of the exchange delay in it Uruguaywhich generates consequences that hit the field squarely.
According to a statement released today by the agricultural union through its social networks, the value of dollar It would have to be 58 pesos in order to “equate it to the average reference level”, which is higher than 43 pesos, according to the values that were recorded at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.
This average value, adjusted by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) prepared by the National Institute of Statistics (INE) for the period between March 2020 and February 2024, shows that the exchange rate should be around 32% higher.
Today, the interbank dollar It closed at 37,507, the value furthest from the average between 2004 and 2023, according to a graph presented by the Rural Federation itself, which shows the evolution of the North American currency against the Uruguayan Peso corrected for inflation during that period.
On the other hand, the Rural Federation assures that currently “greater production is necessary to cover the taxes and operating expenses in pesos in a sector that was already suffering from the worst drought in 70 years”, which they indicate cost the sector about 1,883 million dollars, that is, about 3% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the Uruguay.
Likewise, they explain that the real exchange rate with China, destination of 48% of the exports of beef During the past year, it is 18% below the average for the period 2010-2023 and in the historical average it is down by up to 23%, so “the loss of competitiveness is total.”
In this sense, also take advantage to target the Port of Montevideosince in August of last year the tariffs in dollars for exports were increased by 13%, costs that impact the production chain.
“The consequences are repeated since the disease is the same”
“The consequences are repeated given that the disease is the same, a sector with increasing debt“, continues the statement, adding that “the agricultural sector increased its debt by 48% between January 2022 and January 2024, which went from 2,500 million dollars to 3,564 million dollars.
Finally, the rural union stated that “in previous governments the countryside had to be the State’s coffer, the pandemic arrived and it was the sector that remained standing generating income. Election year and we find ourselves again transferring resources to maintain a level of consumption that does not stop growing”.
Source: Ambito
