The INDEC (National Institute of Statistics and Censuses) published this week the result of the measurement in large areas for the month of February, which showed that in the second month of the year there was a slight sales increase in supermarkets of 1% in relation to the same period last year. However, there was a decrease of 0.1% compared to the month of January.
In wholesale hypermarkets, consumption increased by 2.1% in interannual terms, while the greatest increase was registered in “shopping malls”, which rose 10.1% interannual in February, at a rate of 13.4 % in the Greater Buenos Aires region and 5.4% in the rest of the country.
Thus, during February, supermarket sales amounted to $318,416 million, measured at current prices, of which, 35.7% were made with a Credit Card, 31.6% with a Debit Card, 29% in Cash, and 3.7% in “other means of payment”.
In wholesale self-services, collection at current prices was $51,884 million, with a year-on-year increase of 114.3%. In cash, 42.2% of the acquisitions were made, 23.8% in debit card; 18% with credit, and 16% with “other means of payment”.
In the midst of the financial crisis that is hitting the country, the Minister of Economy, Sergio Massa, met with representatives of the commercial sector to define a new stage of frozen prices to try to stop the escalation of prices.