Projections for sales of food products and gifts for the end-of-year holidays register increases of up to 90% compared to the same period in 2020, according to a private study.

The survey carried out by the Institute of Mass Consumption Studies (Indecom), was carried out between December 1 and 12 in the city of Buenos Aires, the Buenos Aires suburbs, and the cities of Córdoba, Mar del Plata, Rosario, Santa Fe, Mendoza, Posadas, Corrientes, Paraná and Tucumán

According to the report, a weighted average sales increase of 96.4% is projected, with the largest increase among the 30 typical products in the Christmas basket.

The report reflected the voice of wholesalers who claim that “businesses are stocking almost twice as much merchandise as last year,” in Christmas products, and there are “20% more sales operations than in 2019.”

Regarding prices, the weighted average increase is 74.8% compared to last year; with increases of 90% in champagne; 85% in the roast; 68% in chicken; 66% in cider; and 65% in cans of peaches.

“Very marked price differences (up to 56.7%) were also observed for some identical products in both food and gifts (especially in toy stores) according to the different businesses and various sales areas,” indicated the director of Indecom, Miguel Calvete.

For this reason, he considered that "it is once again observed that there is a very high level of speculation by merchants who seek to grow their turnover exorbitantly for these dates."

The report maintained that the sales made “reflect that, during the last 18 months, as a result of the pandemic, people have become very familiar with online sales” and that this modality is expected “on average 60% more transactions than two years ago.”

Regarding payment methods, they indicated that "on average, 40% of consumers pay with credit cards, of which 90% do so in installments, 35% pay with debit cards or through online payment platforms and the remaining 25% use cash."

In the gift category, sales also show a significant upward trend, with items increasing their operations by 68.3%.

The survey indicates that "national industry products register increases that reach 70.6% and imported items from top brands are up to 150% more expensive."

“The trend shows that people are trying to make up for lost time, both in preparing the end-of-year table and in giving gifts,” Calvete assessed.

In the case of imported toys, he indicated that the increase "obviously once again corresponds to the increase that the dollar has suffered so far this year."

In the case of national products, he explained that "in the last twelve months, there was also an increase of more than 60% in the main inputs for their manufacturing (plastic and steel parts), due to the restrictions imposed by the pandemic resulting in input supply problems."

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