(Finance) – Retail sales fell sharply in June, caused by high prices and skyrocketing inflation. The Codacons, commenting on the data provided today by Istat. “On a monthly basis, sales decrease both in value and in volume, with the peak of -2.5% for non-food goods – says the president Charles Rienzi – On an annual basis, the volume of food sales even registered a drop of -4.4%. Numbers affected by the current price emergency in Italy, which on the one hand reduces purchases by households, on the other hand determines an increase in spending: in essence today Italians spend more to buy less ”.
“Against this situation the Government must intervene with urgency arranging the VAT cut on goods primary such as food, so as to lead to an immediate reduction in retail price lists, determine economic benefits for families and support consumption ”- concludes Rienzi.
“Bad data! The high cost of living, which mainly hit the food sector, has forced families to reduce the less necessary purchases, starting, therefore, with non-food items. But food is also affected by the high bills and even if the sales they rise in value, + 0.4% on May 2022, they decrease in volume, -0.8%. In short, Italians eat less! ” he claims Maximilian Donatepresident ofNational Consumers Union.
“On an annual basis, however, the increase in sales is only an optical illusion! The data, in fact, are inflated by theinflation. The sales net of the effect due to price dynamics, in fact, they show a drop, going from + 1.4% of those in value to -3.8% of those in volume. For foodstuffs, it even went from + 4.5% to -4.4%, with a jump of 8.9 percentage points “, concludes Dona.
“The Italians are in serious difficulty economic and the families they also reduce spending on food – explains the president of Assoutenti, Furio Truzzi – Compared to the previous month, the volume of food sales fell by -0.8%, while on an annual basis there was a drop of -4.4%. This means that citizens, in order to cope with the rise in prices and the high bills, are forced to eat less and cut food consumption ”. “A shameful situation for a civilized country, against which it is necessary to intervene by immediately reducing VAT on foodin order to calm down the prices and allow families to put food on the table without bleeding out ”- concludes Truzzi.
“The clouds on the Italian economy are gathering – comments the Istat data from the Research Department of Confcommercio -. After the excellent results achieved from the beginning of 2021 to the first months of the current year, the negative signs in the main economic indicators multiply. The same second quarter GDP growth is likely due to a carry-over effect that is disappearing with the onset ofsummer. Today’s figure confirms that consumption, despite the strong growth of services related to tourism and to sociability, are slowing down. Business confidence was down in July, while that of households has already fallen since June. Inflation gives no respite. Despite supports And help are proving to be very effective, the probabilities of a sharp slowdown in activity in the final months of the year are clearly growing. .
“Istat recorded a significant decline in consumer confidence in July, which touched a minimum that had not been recorded since May 2020, in the middle of the pandemic. Among the items that make up the consumer confidence index, all down, the most marked decreases they are those relating to the economic climate and to the future. It is a fact – he declared Alberto ButtarelliDirector of Studies and Relations with the Supply Chain of Federdistribuzione – which is worrying in view of the coming months: in the autumn, due to the combined impact of this negative sentiment and the effects of inflation, a contraction in consumption could be accentuated. If the actions implemented by the consumersto defend themselves from the impact of the increase in prices on their balance sheets, concerned a greater search for savings and convenience to the detriment of the quality of the products, the supply chains productive Italian excellence. “” It therefore remains essential for the coming months to defend the purchasing power of families – concludes Buttarelli -, starting with low-income households and with children, to support consumption and consequently guarantee stability to the country’s economy “.
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