Inflation doesn't stop. The consequences for consumers and businesses

by Gianni Malerba

As already said in the article "A vote for the climate in the 2022 political electionsthe new Governmentin partnership with Brussels and the EU authorities

What is inflation and what happens when inflation increases?

It is a typical phenomenon of market economies, that is, those economies in which the prices of goods and services are not fixed but vary. According to the definition of the European Central Bankyou can purchase fewer goods and services today

What happens, then, when inflation increases? The more inflation rises, the less purchasing power

Inflation in Italy today: the impact on consumers

The data emerging from the estimate OECDdrop in Italian inflation

Those from the G20 are much more optimistic than those coming from the European Union and the European Central Bank whose President Christine Lagardehigh inflation for a long period

The most recent Istat datagoods most purchased by families

In this context, the products that are most easily reduced from the average consumer's weekly shopping list are fruit and vegetables, with consumption reduced to 11%, a figure that stands at the lowest values of the century.

There is no doubt now that this economic situation and the level of inflation recorded are directas a result of the energy crisissupply of gas from Russia

The gas crisis and the impact on businesses

The impact of inflation on the budgets of families and consumers, as mentioned, also and above all falls on businesses, the ones most affected by the collapse in purchasing power. The costs of gas supplies that companies have to bear are the natural consequence of the growth in European prices: the recent closure of the Nord Stream 1Gazprom

The initiatives of numerous restaurateurs who have decided to display their bills in the premises to justify price increases

To provide some data on a different category of businesses, other than catering, according to Confartigianato21.1 billion more

Inflation: what strategy to overcome the crisis

Making the words of Silva Pompili (Cna Industry) our own - who asks the new Parliament for urgent measures to combat the "devastating" impact that the crisis and inflation are having on the industrial sector - it is necessary that not only our legislator, but also the EU institutions move in this direction. The European Central Bank must also adapt to the new situation, without forgetting the recession estimated for Germanyraise rates

But beyond these temporarily functional measures, a medium-long term program of aid to families and businesses