Countdown to new anti-inflation measures

The market is seriously “exciting” ahead of the introduction of new measures to combat inflation on March 1.

This is a tough crash test, since inflation, especially in the food sector, remains at a high level, despite the measures taken in the previous period with a permanent reduction in prices and the consumer basket. In practice, it was clear that prices continued to rise.

In fact The “basket” measure, as retailers say, has exhausted all its effect and cannot radically solve the problem of rising prices. However, the expectations of the government apparatus this time seem high, despite the fact that mixed signals are coming from the market.

At the same time, while food inflation remains high (8.3% in January 2024), the Ministry of Development decided to exempt 44 categories of goods from the ban on promotions for a period of 3 months if their expiration date is close.

As part of the ministry’s measures, effective from March 1, the measure to reduce industry loans to supermarkets by 30% added some additional products, for example, feminine hygiene products (pads, tampons), which are considered essential and were not included in the initial decision of the Minister of Development. It was also decided that there was a problem of excessive discounting on specific products that needed to be limited.

The most important and interesting thing is that the “Skrekas measure” introduces “short-lived products” with a shelf life of 1 to 30 days into the consumer basket. Thus, the purpose of the ministerial decree is to save money and prevent “another good product” from being thrown into the trash. Based on the measures of the Ministry of Development It is allowed to promote products indicating that they are products with an expiration date. The exact period of time before this moment (liquidation date) is determined when the sale of products at lower prices is allowed.

However, some experts predict a new increase in prices in the coming months, which causes great concern among citizens. It is typical that prices in the supermarket continue to rise with great intensity, as a result of which the purchase of basic products becomes very difficult. It is characteristic that, according to the ongoing study of trends in FMCG retail by the Research Institute of Consumer Goods Retailing (IELKA), in the first half of 2024 a decrease in sales volumes is expected (1.3%) compared to the corresponding half of 2023. Also, in the first half of 2024, an increase in sales volume is expected (1.6%) compared to the corresponding half of 2023.

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