Easter this year will be more expensive, says Abras

The products bought by supermarket chains to supply the gondolas for Easter this year, on March 31, are more expensive than in last year's celebrations, said yesterday the Brazilian supermarket Association (Abras). Get price increases by the entity are: beer (8%), soft drinks (7.8%), Easter eggs (7.6%), fish (6.3%), chocolates (5.4%), wine (5%) and cake Colomba Pascal (4.3%).
But prices over-salted, according to Abras, won't discourage consumers to go shopping. The high of 7.1% in projected sales of supermarkets for Easter last year.
The increase in the price of beer is still a remnant of the adjustments made in 2012, said Flavio Tayra, Economist of Abras. According to him, last year, the price of the product went up nearly 15%. Despite the increase in 2012, sales continued to grow in the nation's largest retailer. The Pão de Açúcar group reported yesterday to the value that beer sales in value, increased by 13% in January, as compared to the same month in 2012.
Easter eggs were more expensive because the product, according to Abras, is more elaborate. "The consumer demand for more sophisticated products, and these aggregated items such as toys and licensing of characters, make the product," said Fernando Yamada, President of Abras. "It is the aggregation of innovation and value."
Considering only the Group of imported products, the increase in detected by search of Abras is 5.7% this year, after prices have stayed stable at Easter in 2012. Tayra said that orders of supermarkets were made between late last year and early this year, when the dollar reached r $ 2.15-today is below $ 2.
"The prospect is that the exchange rate to remain at this level [lower]. But regardless [Exchange level], the participation of imported in supermarkets is of 2.5% to 3% of the basket, that is, in General, is small, "said the Economist.
Supermarket sales should accelerate from April, pulled by the heating of the economy, according to Abras. In January, the real breakthrough (discounting inflation) amounted to 1.82% in relation to same month of last year. The Abras estimates that the expansion of the sales may reach 3.5% this year in comparison with 2012-when growth was over 5%, on a high base recorded in 2011.
Yamada, President of Harbors, said that as of the second quarter will be possible to have a broader view of how the industry's sales will come in 2013. "In addition to the sales bases, we will have two indices of volume that will show which categories that are growing," he said, referring to indicator compiled by the consultancy Nielsen and published bi-monthly by Abras.
The Association's projections are based on the rates of wages, employment and the Family's budget. Last year, the social program received transfers of $ 19 billion. The Abras estimated that the Bolsa Família has been distributing approximately r $ 20 billion this year, but the Government announced last week that it will allocate $ 23.2 billion to the program. That amount, according to Abras, will stimulate the sales growth and help the supermarket to grow 3.5% in 2013.
Part of the extra amount will be spent on purchases at supermarkets, said economist Tayra. "In 2008, the income distribution policies have had a positive effect on sales of supermarkets."
For the gross domestic product (GDP) this year, the Abras calculates a expansion of 3% to 4% for 2012. This projection also reflects the estimates for sales of "we are following closely the macroeconomic indexes and found that there is an availability of income" of citizens to invest in shopping in supermarkets, said Tayra.