Looking at the latest consumer confidence data from the National Institute of Statistics (INE), which this week updated the numbers for March, there is no doubt about concerns that a spike in inflation will cause the Portuguese. It hasn’t been so much concern since the start of the index series, going back to the final months of 1997. No wonder: Inflation hit 4.2% in February, the highest level in ten years, and should have continued to rise in March. The data was released yesterday after the closing of this edition.
The eurozone, which used to live as if inflation were a thing of the past and where it was difficult to raise prices, is now facing inflation rates well above the 2% target set by the European Central Bank (ECB). It will be so during this year and only in 2023, the central bank hopes to return to the desired levels. But whoever sees his salaries lose purchasing power due to the high prices, it is natural for him to worry and do so to compensate. In the state, unions will be asking for a temporary increase and they announced that on the day the new government was inaugurated. The reality in the private sector differs from one sector to another. And in some cases from one company to another. To understand how this strong return to inflation has reached companies and what risks are involved in them having to change salaries, Expresso toured several companies from different sectors. And the scenario, despite the obvious similarities, is not entirely identical.
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