The Employers’ Confederation of the Mexican Republic (Coparmex) plans to strengthen the Package Against Inflation and Famine (PACIC) with the incorporation of small merchants, increase competition in the market and give priority to products from the Mexican countryside over imported ones; otherwise, “it may not have the intended scope.”
Jose Medina Mora, president of the Coparmexargued that inflation is the cancer of the economy, and must be controlled because those who are most affected are people with lower incomes, who simply and simply have enough for less every day.
“At Coparmex we join the call of the Federal Executive to contribute our ´granite of sand´ because we believe that before businessmen we are citizens who believe in Mexico, and if we have promoted for some years increases in minimum salary for workers to improve their quality of life, we must also collaborate to stop the escalation of inflation,” he said.
However, Medina Mora spoke out for including small merchants and producers in the dialogue, which will allow the scope of the PACICas well as considering other possible impacts for the internal economy, after 70% of the economy depends on micro and small businesses.
During the first quarter of 2022, the Mexican economy had a very modest growth of 0.9%. However, we are still at levels similar to 2016, a long way from full economic recovery, he warned.
The president of Coparmex recalled that high inflation is a global phenomenon and that the main advanced economies register their highest inflation levels in decades. Such is the case of the United States reported a inflation of 8.5% in March, the highest since the 1980s. The International Monetary Fund has just raised its inflation outlook for major emerging economies in 2022 to 8.7 percent.
The increase in basic products is more worrying when we consider that 40.3% of the population (around 52 million Mexicans) live in working poverty according to figures from the Coneval. This means that they cannot purchase the food basket with their labor income (formal and informal).
Therefore, it is essential, he said, to give priority to the Mexican countryside. “We must provide producers with tools to make their processes more technical and efficient, in order to have a greater supply of grains. Currently, Mexico is the main importer of corn (38% of national consumption is imported).
Also, the Coparmex leader pointed out, internal competition should be strengthened, after the appointments of the Coffee they are still pending and it is urgent to assign them. Currently, it has only four of the seven members established by the Constitution, which does not allow various resolutions on competition matters to be voted on.
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