Representatives of the business chambers highlighted the “positive signal” of the BCU against the exchange rate delay, but they demand lower costs and “a more agile State.”
Representatives of the country’s main business chambers described it as “a positive sign” to combat the exchange delay the recent 50 basis point cut in the Monetary Policy Rate by the Central Bank of Uruguay (BCU), although they demanded measures to achieve greater competitiveness.
The president of the Chamber of Commerce and Services of Uruguay (Ccsuy), Julio César Lestido, he referred in dialogue with Ambit at the value of dollar and, beyond the strong appreciation observed so far this month, he estimated the exchange rate delay at around 16%, although he warned: “I am more concerned about the country’s competitiveness.”
In turn, the president of the Confederation of Business Chambers, Diego O’Neill, explained to this medium that the reduction in the MPR, which today is at 8.5%, “is positive”, although he considered that “it probably has a relative impact on the exchange rate”, by maintaining that the exchange rate delay “is a difficult issue that affects the productive sector.”
“It’s not going to be something that moves the needle too much, but it’s going in the right direction,” O’Neill analyzed the decision of the Copom, while analyzing that the rate “was a little high compared to the inflation what we have”.
Businessmen demand more competitiveness and less bureaucracy
Among the measures to generate competitiveness, Lestido called for achieving “a simpler, more efficient and less bureaucratic State,” for which he proposed “removing a number of obstacles that do not allow companies to be competitive.”
For the representative of the Ccsuy, “businessmen of all sectors and sizes” agree on the importance of “debureaucratize” to the State and be more agile”, by criticizing “the cost that it takes every day for a company to open, operate and even close”, considering that there are many certificates and authorizations “with long deadlines and obstacles.”
“We have to be very prepared in a changing world and we are going to work hard for the country’s competitiveness,” Lestido highlighted.
Source: Ambito
