Companies get into the debate: expensive or cheap dollar?

The proposal comes from the Argentine Chamber of Distributors and Wholesale Self-Services (Cadam). In a statement titled “Cheap dollar or expensive taxes in Argentina?”the Chamber, which brings together large distributors and hypermarkets with a presence in different towns and provinces of the country such as Makro, Yaguar, Maxiconsumo and Maxiofertas, said that “Beyond the exchange rate, the main problem lies in the tax burden that consumers face.

“From the factory outlet to the sale to the final consumer, cascading taxes represent almost 49% of the price of the products,” they noted.

The statement lists in detail the tax burden, which is composed as follows from the factory:

In the manufacturing process

• 21% VAT.
• 1.5% of gross income.
• 1.2% safety and hygiene rate.
• 1.2% tax on check.
• At the wholesale stage:
• 5.5% of gross income.
• 1.2% tax on check.
• Safety and hygiene rate (according to the municipality).

At the retail stage

• 1.2% tax on check again.
• Municipal safety and hygiene taxes (up to 6%).
• 5.5% of gross income again.

In total, he calculated the group of distributors and wholesale self-service stores, where many of the “local” stores and stores where a good part of the population buys tend to be supplied. “of every $1,000, $490 are taxes” (that is, 49%).

The request of companies for competitiveness

“This tax burden not only makes products more expensive, but also affects the country’s competitiveness compared to its neighbors, who have a significantly lower tax burden,” the statement says.

The Chamber recognizes and praises as “a step forward” the Government’s measure that since January 1 requires that tickets reflect national taxes on each purchase.

“This progress towards transparency is fundamental, but there is still one more step to take. It is essential that the provinces adhere to this law so that provincial and municipal taxes are also reflected,” Cadam says in this regard. And he explains: “If this is not done, you cannot know how much you pay in gross income, municipal rates or other local taxes. This makes invisible a crucial part of the costs and limits the ability of consumers to really understand how much they are paying in taxes. “.

They point out that “Every time the exchange rate rises – they say – prices, services and salaries adjust and we return to the starting point, trapped in an endless cycle. “The real solution is to simplify and reduce taxes at each link in the value chain and ensure that the resources collected are used efficiently.”

Therefore, the statement concludes, they ask “more transparency and deep reform. Knowing exactly how much of our money goes to taxes is the first step to rethinking a system that should be fairer and more efficient for everyone.”

In addition to distributors and wholesale self-services, supermarket chains also complain about the proliferation and high level of municipal taxes, particularly in towns in the Buenos Aires suburbs.