The government is stepping up controls in large supermarkets

The government has tightened controls on supermarkets with an eye on the missing products that make up the basket of care prices. Operations began last week, but this Wednesday they intensified, stung by chains. Inspections are led by officials of the Ministry of Commerce and AFIP, which he put under the magnifying glass gondolas and warehouses and distribution centers where goods are stored.

Such actions express concern for the price escalation of the last few days for the jump of the blue dollar, “A chain received 21 inspections in just 2 hours and another one accumulated 32 until noon“A supermarket source said as an example. The research is focused on shortage of oil, dairy, pasta, rice, sugar and stationeryamong other things.

“In general, they check if there are holes in the nacelles and if the replacement is normal,” they point out from the industry. In some cases, the AFIP carries out control tasks on the accounting and documentation of the companies. Until now, The Government did not communicate the number of operations or the results.

Financial uncertainty has generated a wave of comments. In fact, the consultants already they estimate inflation between 7 and 8% for July, like the floor. These numbers contrast with the 9.3% adjustment agreed with manufacturers for the July / September quarter in the latest renewal of service prices. Between rising costs and increasing demand, chains warn that compliance level has dropped below 50%.

The chains hold producers accountable for shortages. They ensure that “from last week they are not delivering all the goods we ask “and that this has happened before.” Many suppliers have quotas and maximum quotas per product, “complains an industry source.

Prices Care is concentrated in large supermarkets (Carrefour, Jumbo, Coto, Changomás and La Anónima among others), a channel that accounts for 30% of sales of basic items. The rest is distributed by supermarkets, shops and neighborhood businesses.

With the reactivation of inspections, the Government resumes his old cookbook to fight inflation and shortages. The results are visible. They are also aware of the expansion of the price gap between chains and local businessesdistortion aggravated by official controls.

This Wednesday, at the end of the day, one of the leading chains recorded 40 inspections in various branches and distribution centers, “they checked everything, they found nothing,” the source explained. From the supermarket they took a stand on the issue. “We understand that you are looking for control, but it would seem much better for AFIP to apply them to other links in the industry,” she said, referring to the providers of the service price basket.

The program currently covers nearly 950 products with adjusted increments per quarter, which were very outdated due to the acceleration of the increases in the past few days. An average adjustment of 3.3% was authorized in July, well below half the inflation forecast by analysts.

Just compare what happens in local businesses. A study by the consulting firm Scanntech showed that in this channel the prices of mass products increased by 5.5% in the first half of July: food (5%), drinks (5.1%), personal care (8.4%) and cleaning (4.9%).