Supermarkets warn that "there is a drop in consumption that comes several months ago"

The spokesman of the Argentine Federation of Supermarkets, Fernando Aguirre, said that "there is a decline in consumption several months ago" because "wages are the last price that suits ".

"The fall in consumption has lasted for several months, whenever there is a crisis, the same thing happens," he told Continental Radio.

"Wages are the last price that fits in. Prices keep going up, wages are calm and people can not buy, or at least they can not buy what they've bought previously, "he added.

Aguirre added that in the current context "the price freeze is a palliative" and claimed that saying that supermarkets are the "culprits" of inflation "can withstand the slightest badysis, n & # There is no sustenance. " serious problems of profitability, especially small and regional chains. "

" What we see is that all governments use the dollar rate as an anti-inflationary tool, during period 1 to 1, the same thing happened: the dollar had a fictitious price that served to control inflation, but when it was at its natural price that the crisis happened, "he said.

He also described as "very serious" the fact that supermarkets have to wait 18 business days to collect card purchases. "In the case of debit cards, accreditation should be immediate." Another question is the amount of commissions, which are among the largest in Latin America, "he concluded.

According to data from the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INDEC), sales in supermarkets in April showed a significant decline, while sales at constant prices, which indicate sales volume, totaled $ 21,473.4 million, down 2.1% from April 2017.

According to private consultants, negative data are also recorded in May, when the price transfer began because of the rising dollar.