The government is closely following the situation of businesses on the border with Argentina and will meet in the coming days to analyze the exchange situation with said country. The secretary of the Presidency, Álvaro Delgado, said that before announcing new measures, they are going to carry out a fine-tuning.
“We are going to have a meeting to exchange ideas,” Delgado said this Sunday at a press conference and acknowledged that the situation in Argentina is “difficult to follow.”
Said meeting will be with members of the Ministry of Economy, customs, tax and commercial policy, and will also be the Minister of Labor, Pablo Mieres, “because we have to see how it impacts employment,” said Delgado.
The issue is on the first order of business of the government. On Monday of last week, President Luis Lacalle Pou received the mayor of Río Negro, Omar Lafluf, on this issue at Suárez y Reyes. The conversation focused on the situation in the coastal departments due to the exchange rate difference with Argentina. Subsequently, the president met with the Minister of Economy and Finance, Azucena Arbeleche, to evaluate possible measures to be taken.
In dialogue with the newspaper CAMBIO de Salto, Lafluf stated that in relation to border prices, which is a recurring theme, in that sense, he said that Lacalle Pou stated that many measures can be taken, however, it cannot be matched. Lafluf explained that he does not think the same as other people in that the zero kilo measure does not work, but some solution must be found, another incentive must be provided to local businesses because the prices on the Argentine side are not going to change, so Therefore, it is necessary to use creativity to help the Uruguayan merchant, in any case, he assured that a simple solution is not in sight.
When asked about withdrawing VAT from the products of the basic basket, Lafluf explained that this would not be the problem, he assured that the President tries to offer as many options as possible, Fray Bentos is different from the situation in Salto and Paysandú, in the sense that they are 30km from Gualeguaychú, but also in Salto, bagashopping has been installed for many years. The problem is known to everyone, but the solution is very difficult. Lafluf said that when he wants to protect the commerce of a small city, he meets citizens everywhere, and they are the ones who tell him that the money they earn pays him more when buying in the neighboring country, but on the other hand, his salary receives in Rio Negro. “A clear example is gasoline, you pay 30% less, the value is $U 56, and in Argentina the price is the equivalent of $U 27.” After the meeting with Mayor Lafluf, Lacalle Pou met with the Minister of Economy, Azucena Arbeleche, to continue analyzing the issue. Days spent in Salto, the president had stated that he is “aware of the situation in Salto and Paysandú above all. We have been meeting with the president of the Salto Shopping Center and with all the authorities. Unfortunately, we have a neighbor who has a certain economic situation that generates ridiculous prices with respect to the cost of some products in Uruguay,” said the president. “We are working to be able to make them cheaper, not only at the border but throughout the country, what is certain is that we are not going to reach the prices that Argentina has at the moment,” he added. Regarding the local authorities of the Shopping Center, the president Cra. Vera Fachín said that they are waiting for the possible measures that can be adopted after the meeting between the president and the Minister of Economy. The number of people who cross daily to the neighboring city of Concordia, motivated by the exchange rate difference, continues to be significant and it is expected that from Wednesday onwards the exodus to Argentina will be increased by the days of spring holidays.
Lacalle Pou greeted the Jewish community
This Sunday, September 25, the Jewish community celebrated “Rosh Hashanah”, the year 5,7833 of the Hebrew calendar. The President of the Republic, Luis Lacalle Pou, greeted the Jewish community in Uruguay on Sunday morning for the New Jewish Year. “Shaná Tová for the entire Jewish community in our country,” the president wrote through his Twitter account.
