In addition to affecting the price of basic basket products in the country, inflation has also made bottled drinking water more expensive.
The best-known commercial brands, and from which the bulk of people get their jug, They recently raised their cost between two and six pesos in the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area (ZMG), depending on the place of purchase.
“Here at the corner store they wanted to sell me a jug for 49 pesos. I told them they were crazy, if just a week before they had sold it to me for 45 pesos. And they say it’s not much, but at home we use up to three a week, so it’s much more expensive,” shared Marcela Barreto, who is a housewife in the Mezquitán Country neighborhood, in Guadalajara.
Store owners have also felt the impact of cost increases.
“People come and get angry because we raised the price, but there is no other way, it is getting more expensive for all of us,” said Jaime Silva, who has owned a convenience store for more than 20 years.
The National Alliance of Small Merchants (ANPEC) recognized the increase this 2023 of at least two pesos in water jugs and pointed out that Other products that became more expensive are snacks and cookies.
Also, at the end of 2022 the price of cigarettes and sweet and box bread increased.
The purifiers appear as an option in the face of the inflationary phenomenon that affects the cost of jugs of water. THE INFORMER/C. Zepeda
Tapatíos opt for purifying plants to save a few pesos
Inflation has reduced the pockets of Mexicans, since the prices of some of the most widely consumed products have increased, between two and five pesos, such as brands of purified water jugs.
It should be noted that given the increase in the cost of jugs of drinking water, bottles of different sizes and the delivery service to homes, hundreds of people from Guadalajara are beginning to opt for new options to supply their homes: purifiers.
To know this measure in detail, THE REPORTER took to the streets to find out the opinions of the citizens who commonly supply their drinking water in refill centers through the purifiers. At first, he stressed that The population that consumes this type of service assured that the price-quality ratio is much better than buying in the commercial sector.
Carlos Suárez, father of a family, arrived at the Freática purification plant, in the Santa Teresita neighborhood, with at least four jugs to fill; To an express question from this medium, he replied that for some years he had chosen to move from buying jugs in commercial trucks to purifying plants due to low costs and the quality of service.
“I opted for this service taking into account four things: hygiene, quality, price and attention, because the reality is that it is very cheap for us and we can see how they clean the business, how everything is in its place. I have never bought in stores, before I bought in the truck of the most prestigious brands and the truth is that I was very dissatisfied with the service, the quality, in addition to the fact that they began to place orders by phone and they called you up to 15 times in one day, a a real nuisance and with a much higher price”, he pointed out.
The same case was that of David Flores who, accompanied by his daughter Susana, affirmed that almost a year ago he made the decision to stop consuming commercial brands and chose to supply the water in purifiers.
“In the house we did it for our economy, because of the costs that are cheaper and it’s the same, it has been a good saving for the pocket, it is much better to do it here even if the price goes up in this establishment… The quality is good even if it goes up ”, he commented.
It should be noted that an increase in the cost of purified water by filling jugs is already expected, since in this space located in the Santa Teresita neighborhood, the 20-liter refill for each jug costs 12 pesos; however, there is already an increase to reach 15 pesos.
In this regard, Lilia Arias, a worker at the purification plant, commented that the possible increase in the cost of the service derives from the fact that all basic inputs are rising without any distinction, while her company has maintained the same price for at least three years.
“Everything goes up, except us, and when we tell them that we could increase the cost, some clients deny, they get upset, but it is always better for them to buy them here than to look for them abroad, there are other places where they charge you for stamps, covers, here we are honest, but it’s not enough for the bosses anymore,” he said.
According to what was indicated by the employee, the Freática purifier serves an average of up to 30 people per hour on days with a large influx of customers, while the weekly average is around more than a thousand jugs supplied to individuals, same that are filled with treated water that is obtained by means of pipes.
Between one and three pesos
During the first week of 2023, the costs of jugs of water, cookies and snacks rose from one to three pesos, according to reports from convenience and grocery store vendors in Guadalajara.
As of December 2022, the prices of commercial water jugs they remained between 43 and 47 pesos, but during the first week of January they increased by one peso.
On the other hand, the packages of commercial cookies they also reported an increase of between one and two pesos; For example, some brands in their 109-gram presentation are now sold at 17 pesos when they were at 16 pesos.
In the case of snack, such as peanut packages, are currently sold for more than 20 pesos. Meanwhile, French fries and other fried foods are sold at 17 to 18 pesos in grocery stores, while in convenience stores their cost rises to 19 pesos, when at the beginning of 2022 they were at 14 and 16 pesos. .
Trademarks ceased to be of interest to the consumer. THE INFORMER/C. Zepeda
They publish a decree to counteract inflation
The Ministry of Economy announced that yesterday afternoon it published in the Official Gazette of the Federation the new decree that extends measures to counteract inflation expected in 2023.
Among these measures are temporarily exempting the payment of tariffs on the final importation of food, personal hygiene products, animal feed and agricultural inputs.
This exemption will be in force until December 31, 2023 and will apply to products grouped into 56 tariff fractions, in addition to the 33 tariff fractions of the previous decrees, 23 more are added, which contain the following foods and articles: “Turkey, garlic , lettuce, spinach, lentils, pear, husked rice, corn starch, sausages, tilapia, soy sauce, tomato sauces, preparations for soups and broths, prepared soups and broths, meat meal and meat offal for animal feed or fertilizer , cereals, waste from the starch industry, food for dogs and cats”.
Also “body deodorant, disinfectants, tablecloths and napkins, toothbrushes, sanitary napkins, diapers, fertilizers, insecticides, rodenticides and herbicides, as well as soybean, sunflower and safflower oil.”
In addition, the administrative facilities to accredit non-tariff regulations and restrictions will be maintained and extended, so that those who have the Single Universal License may exempt the accreditation of that regulation; importers who “prove their experience” may also benefit.
For which they must demonstrate that they have been importing any of these products for at least 24 months and that “the previously imported merchandise corresponds to the same subheading of the tariff fraction contained in the decree and the same non-tariff regulations and restrictions that are required have been complied with.” in said fractions.
The first decree issued by the government to curb inflation was in May 2022 when it launched the Package Against Inflation and Famine (Pacic), which was adjusted on October 19, 2022, under the Opening Agreement Against Inflation and the Famine (Apecic). It should be noted that Banco de México expects consumer prices to converge towards their goal by the third quarter of 2024.
Regarding the announcement made by the Ministry of Economy, the Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce, Services and Tourism (Concanaco) and the Confederation of Industrial Chambers (Concamin) pointed out that the new decree that extends the measures to contain inflation is a good measure. However, they said that the effects that this can have must be monitored.
On the one hand, the president of Concanaco, Héctor Tejada Shaar, said that it is necessary to “analyze in depth how it will be applied and what are the real consequences for the commerce, services and tourism sectors.”
He added that although they are in favor of measures that counteract the escalation of prices “We must carefully consider the application of each of them to avoid any damage to the domestic market.”
He said that they defend the interests of the formal tertiary sector and added that they promote not using advertisements as a pretext for an unjustified increase in prices. On the other hand, Concamin pointed out that it “supports all those measures that seek to reduce inflation”, because this favors that the income of families is not diminished.
“All those measures that are taken for the benefit of the family economy are positive and will be supported, provided that the objective is to take care of the income of the workers,” he explained.
The arrival of the January slope is impacting the pockets of Mexicans. THE INFORMER/Archive
THE VOICE OF THE EXPERT
Impact on pockets
Hector Ivan del Toro Rios, research professor at the University of Guadalajara
The beginning of the year and the arrival of the January slope are having an impact on the pockets of Mexicans and the Guadalajara are no exception. Despite the increase in the minimum wage, the expenses coming from the closing of the year 2022 and the increase in the costs of the basic basket will cause serious effects on the economy of the population, warned the research professor of the Department of Economics of the University Center of Administrative Economic Sciences (CUCEA) of the University of Guadalajara (UdeG), Héctor Iván del Toro Ríos.
In an interview, he stated that the first fortnight of the year is always the most complex due to the payment of taxes, as well as the first receipts for purchases made between the months of November and January. He stressed that the increase in the costs of products, such as tomatoes, onions, potatoes, chicken, beef, pork and eggs, must be added to the above.
“We are having a very complex start to the year, because although the minimum wage increase in the order of 20 percent for the worker base is already applied, the reality is that this increase also impacts services and products; the bosses who must pay more and consequently raise their prices in the same way”, he pointed out.
Due to this, inputs of the basic basket registered an increase in their costs from the first days of January 2023, while the workers have not felt the real increase in their salary received according to the expenses that have been dragging on from the end of year, as well as the payment of taxes and compensations.
The academic assured that for this year, The inflation rate has a projection of less than 2022, going from 9.47 percent to an estimated annual average of eight percent for 2023. However, he stressed that the effects of the salary increase and the drop in this financial rate will not be reflected in the pockets of citizens until after the first half of the year.
