Supermarkets ask the Government for extra time to show that they don’t seem to be benefiting from the VAT discount to inflate their revenue margins | EUROtoday

The supermarkets have requested the Government for extra time to show that they don’t seem to be benefiting from the VAT discount on meals to inflate their revenue margins, one thing expressly prohibited within the anti-crisis decree that regulates this short-term measure that was applied to include the escalation of inflation. As EL MUNDO has discovered, a number of chains have requested to increase the timeframe that the Ministry of Consumer Affairs had initially given them to ship the accounts that show that, certainly, they’re accurately transferring the tax low cost to prospects.

Last February, the division headed by Pablo Bustinduy made a splash by saying an initiative that his predecessor in workplace, Alberto Garzn, had not been carried out up to now. The Consumer authorities opened an investigation into the primary retail distributors that function within the nation, sending “information requests to the supermarket chains to check whether they are correctly transferring the VAT reduction to consumers,” in keeping with the Ministry, which prevented specifying. from which particular corporations this info had been requested.

Well, two months after that announcement, Consumption has not but concluded the investigation as a result of “some chains have requested an extension of the deadline and it has been granted”, as defined by sources from the Ministry who make clear that the deadlines might be suspended for various causes. , “depending on the circumstances alleged by the economic operators from whom information requirements are requested.” In any case, Bustinduy's division states that “everyone has already delivered the required information and it is being studied right now.”

In parallel, the National Commission of Markets and Competition (CNMC) retains supermarkets beneath surveillance. In July 2023, it printed a primary report through which it licensed that the distribution chains have been accurately transferring the decreased VAT to the ultimate costs, primarily based on the knowledge collected between January and May of that yr, that’s, in the course of the first 5 months of the measure in power. And, in keeping with sources from the Ministry of Economy to EL MUNDO, the supervisor is engaged on a brand new up to date analysis report on the measure.

Pending this report, for now, the one statistical reference obtainable to watch the evolution of the income of corporations within the sector is the company margins observatory that elaborates the Bank of Spain. In its newest replace, yesterday, it confirmed that, within the second half of 2023, the margins on gross sales of the agri-food chain elevated barely, however with a heterogeneous evolution in its completely different subsectors: whereas the margins in agriculture elevated, within the business They remained “at levels much lower than those before the energy crisis”, though they appear to “have begun a path of recovery towards pre-pandemic levels.” On the opposite hand, margins in meals commerce have chained declines since 2021, with out reversing the contractions skilled in the course of the yr. shock energtico.

While the Ministries of Economy and Consumer Affairs maintain supermarkets beneath surveillance to make sure that they’re transferring the complete tax low cost to the ultimate costs that customers pay and should not benefiting from the state of affairs to extend their revenue margins, the meals business prepares the bottom to ask the Government to keep up the VAT discount on fundamental merchandise, not less than, till the top of the yr. The measure expires subsequent June 30 and, when the time comes, the businessmen will convey to the Executive the necessity to prolong it to assist include the costs of the purchasing basket within the second half.

Sources from the Spanish Federation of Food and Beverage Industries (FIAB) affirm that they are going to ask the Government to increase the discount within the Value Added Tax on meals “at least until the end of the year” and can insist on demanding that the record be expanded. of affected merchandise to include, for instance, meat or fish, thought of important. In parallel, they hope that the state of affairs of political uncertainty is not going to additional delay the processing of the invoice that features the VAT discount on olive oil to 0% agreed with Junts in alternate for its assist for the anti-crisis decree final January. If accepted in May, it would solely stay in power for a month if the Government doesn’t determine to increase the tax cuts beginning in July.