The Minister of Economy, Luis Caputo, ruled out this Wednesday
an abrupt jump in the dollar
and asked the CEOs of large mass consumption companies
to "accompany"
the signs of slowing inflation, during a meeting in which the sector was
concerned about the sharp drop in sales
in leading brands, affected by the adjustment plan and the recession.
Caputo summoned them at 2:30 p.m. at the Treasury Palace with the aim of "listening" to their diagnosis of the state of the situation.
In this framework, the executives pointed out that "there is no massive collapse in activity", but they warned that
in some categories the contraction of operations "is felt strong"
and they expressed their concern in the future about the
increase in costs
due to inflation.
The Government called on food, beverage and personal hygiene manufacturers, such as Las Tres Niñas;
Río de la Plata Mills;
Cañuelas Mills;
Quickfood SA;
Las Marías Establishment;
Procter & Gamble;
Johnson & Johnson;
Arcor;
Mondelez;
Mastellone;
The real;
Danone;
Unilever;
Industrial Brewery Company;
Coca Cola;
Nestlé and Quilmes.
These are the most affected items: while retail sales in SME businesses fell 25.5% annually in February,
food and beverages fell 33.3%
due to the strong price increases in recent months, according to CAME.
The inflationary shock led consumers to suppress the purchase of top-brand soft drinks, juices and waters, and reduced both production and demand for meat.
Accompanied by the Secretary of Commerce,
Pablo Lavigne
, the minister tried to remain calm and assured that the program "began to show results" due to the slowdown in inflation, based on the strong fiscal adjustment and the "improvement" of the Central Bank's balance sheet. .
The Government expects February inflation to drop to 15%
, after falling to 20.6% in January.
The companies recognized that
"price increases in February and March began to decline steadily
. "
The decline is explained by the sharp drop in income and the recession in a context where economists participating in the Survey of Market Expectations (REM) prepared by the Central Bank (BCRA) estimated in February a drop in GDP of 3.5 % in 2024.
However, several consulting firms warn that this downward trend would stop in March and could even cause
the CPI to rise to a level close to 20% due to the increase in rates
in public services and the eventual recovery of salaries due to pressure from unions. .
Businessmen were particularly concerned about the
impact of a possible rise in the official dollar.
"We are working hard so that there is no imbalance in the macro variables that could affect production costs, we are taking care and I am
aware of the importance of the value of the official dollar for mass consumption
, we do not see
any sudden devaluation ahead
and we hope
that "Support with the prices
," Caputo responded.
During the presentation, the minister reviewed the "debureaucratization and normalization" measures of domestic and foreign trade such as the non-renewal of the Fair Prices program, the repeal of the Supply, Gondola and Price Observatory laws, the termination of trusts, and the repeal of information regimes that "only increased costs."
In this way, Caputo tried to instill optimism among businessmen, who
once again reinstated promotions and discounts
to compensate for the drop in consumption in the hardest hit items.
And he emphasized the importance of list prices "fairly reflecting market conditions."
The thing is that in other categories, such as grated cheese, there are increases of up to 25% in March.
Without price controls, the Economy seeks to stop inflation with a "depressed" official dollar and the liquefaction of income,
a policy that is difficult to sustain over time
and that could become complicated if the stocks are lifted or the Central Bank stops accumulating reserves.
"They talked about the drop in sales in general and the minister asked them to believe in the plan, that there is evidence that we are doing well," summarized a businessman.
NE