Collection slows down: it grew 93% annually in January, below inflation, and less than in December

Due to the sharp fall in the settlement of foreign exchange and the reduction in imports

, collection grew at a slower pace in January.

.

Although the data for January will be released on February 14, economists expect the CPI to show a variation of around 98%.

The result for the first month of 2023 showed a slowdown compared to December

, when revenues increased 95.6% to $2.3 trillion, driven by the soybean dollar.

Without this contribution, the Ministry of Economy highlighted that the collection of January was "driven by the performance of taxes associated with the internal market and the social security system."

VAT rose 103%, an item that represents more than a third of the growth in tax collection compared to 2022, the tax on Credits and Debits grew 97.4% and Coparticipated Internal Taxes 94.5%.

On the other hand, the PAIS tax, the 30% surcharge that is applied to consumption in dollars and also to savings dollars, had a rebound and rose 105.3%.

The tax on personal assets increased 325.6%, the largest increase of all, as a result of the additional collection of 25% since October for expenses in dollars on cards greater than US$300. And the income tax climbed 97, 7% for the extraordinary advance of profits made by the companies and the perception applied to the purchase of foreign currency in July.

Social security resources, meanwhile, expanded 105.4%, accelerating for the sixth consecutive month, which the authorities attributed to the recovery of wages and employment.

The rise responds to the growth in employer contributions (108.9%) and the increase in personal contributions (101.4%).

Foreign trade taxes, on the other hand, registered a variation of 19.3%, showing a marked slowdown compared to December.

Import duties and the statistical tax recorded a joint growth of 58.8% and withholdings on exports fell 4.4% in a month that was the worst in foreign exchange settlement for agriculture since 2006.

"It is worth noting that the interannual variation in the collection of Export Duties in January was affected by the drought registered in recent months, which had a significant impact on the production of corn and wheat," said Economía.

For the analysts, the collection data showed a start with a "real decrease".

," said the Argentine Institute for Fiscal Analysis (IARAF).

"Collection is a key factor when evaluating the genuine financing capacity of public spending. Sustaining positive real growth during the year is going to be a great challenge," he added.