The government is strengthening price controls and negotiating with supermarkets to prevent excessive price increases.

With a focus on containing inflation ahead of the elections , the government intensified its monitoring of store prices and held another meeting with representatives from supermarkets , wholesalers, and grocers.

The meeting was led by officials from the Ministry of Production and Consumer Protection , who thanked businesses for not approving excessive price increases and highlighted the stability of the dollar and the direction of the economic program without price controls.

The meeting was between the Secretary of Production Coordination, Pablo Lavigne, and the Undersecretary of Consumer Protection and Fair Trade, Fernando Blanco Muiño, with other supermarkets associated with the Argentine Chamber of Supermarkets (CAS) and the Argentine Federation of Supermarkets and Self-Service Stores (FASA) , grocers grouped in the Federation of Grocers of the Province of Buenos Aires (FABA) and wholesalers, represented by the Chamber of Distributors and Wholesale Self-Service Stores (Cadam) .

The main driver was the price of sunflower oil , one of the products with the greatest upward pressure . Although companies in the sector moderated their initial orders from 12% to 5%, a leading brand insists on increasing prices, citing the rising international value of sunflowers.

In some parts of the country, price adjustments were recorded, but promotions were also intensified, such as the “ Wholesale Black Week ” with discounts of up to 40%.

Mass consumption showed signs of recovery : in April it grew 0.1% year-on-year according to Scentia, and sales at constant prices rose 1.5% in February, according to Indec. Wholesalers and warehouses are leading the recovery in a context of fierce competition to attract consumers who buy only essentials.