Neither the fall in the price of gasoline, nor the fact that the Region of Murcia was the community with the largest monthly decrease in the Consumer Price Index (CPI), nor the contraction in consumption that is already beginning to be glimpsed due to the general loss of purchasing power…. Inflation continues indomitable and does not stop rising. In the month of July it reached an increase of 11.4% in the Region compared to the same month last year, six tenths above the national average, which stood at 10.8%.
Murcia remains among the most inflationary autonomous communities in Spain. Castilla-La Mancha, with an interannual increase of 13.2%, Castilla y León (12%), La Rioja (11.7%), Extremadura and Galicia (11.5%) are above the Region, which last month the data of being the autonomy with the greatest decrease compared to the previous month, specifically 0.6%, was noted, according to figures provided yesterday by the National Institute of Statistics (INE).
Despite the extensive production of vegetables and fruits, the amount of these products accumulates a year-on-year increase in the Region of 19.7% and 17.4%, respectively
By groups, the largest increases in the Region in the last twelve months occurred in housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels, with a price increase of 20.6%, transport, with 17%, and food and non-alcoholic beverages, with a rise of 15.3%, all of them with a direct impact on family spending.
Of the dozen groups of products in which the INE structures the CPI, only in communications did prices fall last month, specifically by 2.2%.
Eggs sky high
A more precise analysis of specific items in the shopping basket shows to what extent Murcian families are suffering from rising food prices.
According to the data offered by the INE, in the Region of Murcia the rise of 29.3% registered in the last twelve months for eggs, and 29% for oils and fats stands out. Other frequently consumed products have also skyrocketed in cost in the Region, such as poultry (27.3%) and beef (19%), potatoes and their derivatives (19.2%), cereals ( 17.9%) and even bread (15%).
But it is more striking that an autonomous community that stands out for its production of fruit and vegetables also suffers price increases for these products well above the average. Fresh legumes and vegetables registered an interannual increase of 19.7% in the Region and fresh fruits, 17.4%.
The largest increase that has occurred in the Region, among all the products for which the INE offers data, has been in heating, lighting and water distribution, with 37.2%. The increases of 17.9% in women’s clothing, 18% in furniture and 17.8% in personal transport are also noteworthy.
The comparison between the evolution of the CPI in the groups of products of the Region and of the whole of Spain shows that Murcians must face a rise in prices higher than the average in food and non-alcoholic beverages, in clothing and footwear, furniture and transportation.
Inflationary tensions will be transferred to collective bargaining, as unions demand the inclusion of salary review clauses
Tensions in social dialogue
The persistent rise in prices and its impact on the purchasing power of families threatens to strain relations between unions and employers and make collective bargaining more difficult.
Both UGT and CC OO yesterday launched messages that predict this path. UGT highlighted the need to “combat the continuous reduction in the quality of life of the working class, as well as sustain economic activity and job creation” through “rise in wages”, a measure that it considers an “economic necessity”. and social of the first order.
In this sense, the union claimed “the urgency of promoting a fair distribution of the costs associated with the inflationary drift, so that the working class is not again the main victim in a context of economic adversity.”
The regional government announced that it will apply a deflation of the regional section of personal income tax in next year’s income statement
A measure that will directly affect the negotiation of the renewal of collective agreements in the Region will be the demand by unions to include salary review clauses, which UGT considers as “the most effective instrument to safeguard purchasing power ” from the workers.
For its part, CC OO described as “vital” that both the regional Executive and the Croem employers “become aware of the importance of collective bargaining, the quintessential instrument capable of improving the quality of life of society as a whole, which has repercussions directly in consumption and the dynamization of the economy». The secretary of Training and Occupational Health of the regional executive of Workers’ Commissions, Juan Blázquez, agreed with the UGT in demanding the inclusion of salary guarantee clauses in the agreements, in order to “minimize the impact of inflation on the purchasing power of Workers”.
Income tax deflation
The Minister of Economy, Finance and Digital Administration, Luis Alberto Marín, proposed other types of measures to reduce the impact of the sharp rise in prices on families. “It is necessary for the Government of Spain to apply a deflation of personal income tax, as the regional government will apply from next year’s income statement – when its powers allow it – and that in the case of the State it could be applied already next year. month”.
The purpose of applying this measure in the regional section of personal income tax, which the president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, has also announced will be put into practice, is to counteract the fiscal effects of the rise in prices and wages that is being produced by the current economic situation and prevent taxpayers from paying more for this reason.
Luis Alberto Marín insisted yesterday, in statements to LA VERDAD, that “the recipe to get out of this unprecedented crisis is stability, security, confidence and fiscal moderation, just the opposite of what we have with Pedro Sánchez and his partners.”
Luis Alberto Marín, Minister of Economy and Finance: «We must reduce taxes on the middle and lower classes»
The Minister of Economy, Finance and Digital Administration, Luis Alberto Marín, considers that “the new rise in the CPI is very bad news that weighs down families and the economy again.” In his opinion, “it is necessary for the Government of Spain to act now with real measures, such as lowering taxes on the middle and lower classes so that they can recover part of the purchasing power that they are losing. In fact, high inflation is one more tax that falls on the shoulders of the middle classes and the most vulnerable groups in the face of the passivity and inaction of a president more concerned with staying in Moncloa than with taking far-reaching measures that help overcome this crisis.
Juan Blázquez, Secretary of Training of CC OO: “It is possible to agree on price containment in some sectors”
The leader of CC OO Juan Blázquez believes that “it is perfectly possible to agree on a price containment agreement in certain sectors with a wide profit margin, such as housing, energy or tourist packages, which in July its August. The union organization maintains that “it is not possible for the working class to continue sacrificing its health and well-being for the sake of benefits for a few”, for which it demands “prevention measures, transparent contracts (with the corresponding remuneration that they quote, without payments in ‘B’) and that the Labor Inspectorate be provided with digital resources and measures to prosecute fraud.
Ascensión Ludeña, Secretary of Employment of the UGT: «Salaries have barely risen 2.16% until July»
“With this new rise in inflation, we find that wages, which until July have barely risen by 2.16% in regional agreements, are not responsible for this progression, but rather the main ones punished by it,” the official said yesterday. Secretary of Employment of UGT, Ludeña Ascension. “The reduction in the purchasing power of working people is incontestable evidence, with negative repercussions for consumption and economic activity,” she added. For this reason, she called for “more dialogue with social agents to implement immediate measures that truly protect the most vulnerable groups, who are currently experiencing serious problems.”
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