Fynsa
Last week I wrote about the surprise March CPIwhich brought year-on-year year-on-year inflation to 9.4%.. The above, in a global context in which prices continue to rise steadily, but in which local conditions have exacerbated the above phenomenon. Also, in a previous column, I told you about the construction of the CPI basket and how it represents an average individual in our economy, but that this does not mean that it represents each of us as individuals.. Well, in this opportunity, I want to lower the debate to something that I have been constantly asked about in the media, and that is the prices of some particular products. the prices of some particular productswith a special fixation on oil (oil in 2022 is what avocado was in 2021). However, I don't just want to stick to the classic graph of the products that are going up (or down) the most, but I want to show you the ones that have had the biggest impact on your pocket. those that have had the greatest impact on the pocket and how it is reaffirmed that inflation is the worst tax for those who have less resources.
Firstfirst, I'm going to talk about inflation from the very nature of the concept itself, which is the sustained increase in prices in an economy over a given period. In other words, I am not going to comment on the the specific increase in goods and services during March, since these are oftenIn other words, I am not going to comment on the specific increase in goods and services during March, since these are often contaminated by seasonality, methodological issues or discrete variations that do not necessarily represent a trend. Thus, in this line, what we are interested in, then, is to see which are the goods and services that have had the greatest impact on the 9.4% accumulated increase in the economy's prices over twelve months..
Thus, the product that has had the greatest impact on the CPI, in one year, is gasoline, is gasoline.. In fact, it accounts for 0.8 percentage points of the total, "thanks" to its increase of almost 31%. In second placewithin the same division, is new automobilewhich, due to its 20.2% increase, has an impact of just over 0.6 pp on the aggregate indicator (its relative, the used car, also rises 20%, but its impact only amounts to 0.05 pp). But, unlike the first one, it is not that you are buying a new car every month, therefore, in your inflationary perception, this type of goods may not necessarily mean a higher monetary outlay.. However, when we continue with the list, we find that among the 20 products that have had the greatest impact on inflation, we can find the following 20 products that have had the greatest impact on the year15 products can be qualified as being of current use (in addition to gasoline, meat, bread, gas, drinking water, etc.). In case you are in doubt, oil only appears in 22nd placewith an incidence of 0.09 pp.
Another way of looking at it is to compare the behavior of some sub-baskets versus the aggregate indicator. consumption baskets versus the aggregate indicator. Thus, considering a methodology of the INE based on recommendations of the Ministry of Healthwe constructed the basic food basket and the healthy food basketin addition to the food basket that is published regularly. The results are not very encouragingThe results are not very encouraging, considering that the basic basket shows an increase of 13.6% in one year, more than 4 points above the aggregate indicator. As if that were not enough, the healthy basket has risen 14.1% in the same period, while the healthy basket has risen 14.1% in the same period. in the same period, while the basket that groups all food items together has risen 13.1%. It is true that the budgets of each household are not completely dedicated to these baskets, but the higher the percentage of income dedicated to them, the higher the perception will be, the higher the perception of inflation will be.. Now, it is no surprise that the households that spend relatively more on these products are those with lower incomes. This directly impacts purchasing powerwhich is ultimately what matters, reducing their welfare. It is curious that many of the measures that, with intentions that I do not doubt were good, ended up affecting those they were intended to help. This usually happens when you do not want to listen and the parties that have to make the decisions are hiding behind their own interests and not those they represent, who are generally not the ones who shout the loudest.
At a crucial moment in our historyIt is not too late to listen and not to forget the effort made in the 90s to defeat inflation, the tax that hits where it hurts the most.
