“A frost on Christmas! Beyond the mirage of rising annual sales (+1.3%), due only to inflation which inflates their value, real consumption is falling».
This is the denunciation of Massimiliano Dona, president of the National Consumer Union , after the publication of the new Istat data which signal, in October, a drop of 0.4% compared to the previous month in sales in retail value. And despite the skyrocketing prices, even food sales in value are down, -0.1% on September, while those in volume drop by 7.9% on October 2021, with a gap compared to those in value (+4 .7%) by 12.6 points.
«The high cost of living has emptied the pockets of Italians, who will be forced to use thirteenths to pay their electricity and gas bills. A Christmas in white guaranteed », comments Doria. Adding: «Families are already forced to tighten their belts and eat less. But that's not all: according to the study by the National Consumer Union, October food sales in volume, in raw data, are even 8.5% lower than October 2020".
"The Government - concludes the president of the National Consumer Union - must completely review the maneuver , focusing on increasing the disposable income of families, not only of large families or the absolute poor, but also of the middle class, now too impoverished by the increase of forced expenditure, otherwise the slowdown in growth will turn into a recession in a short time».
(Unioneonline/lf)
