MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Kirchner key ally says that inflation in Argentina can’t be denied, “it’s reality”

Teamsters boss Hugo Moyano

Argentina’s main union leader and a close political ally of President Cristina Kirchner, Hugo Moyano said that “inflation in Argentina is a fact, and nobody can deny it’s a reality”. His words follow previous statement from Economy minister Amado Boudou who admitted “prices’ tension but “not necessarily inflation”

After Boudou's Thursday comments, in which he stated that “some tensions due to price hikes” were “logical for a developing country,” Moyano stated that he “wasn't sure what the Minister had meant,” and added that “someone taught us once that reality is the only truth, and today reality indicates there is inflation.”

The teamsters boss and head of the most powerful Argentine unions confederation also assured that union leaders will make their requests for higher salaries and a higher minimum wage due to price hikes in supermarkets.

“The inflation is an evident fact that we see every day when going to the supermarket: we have to take that into account when we discuss salaries,” he concluded.

Although Argentina’s manipulated official inflation figures show that consumer prices’ hike remain below two digits, all private consultants and economic advisors agree that inflation and worse still, inflationary expectations are funning at an annual 30%.

Inflation in 2009 was estimated anywhere between 15 and 22%, even when the “creative accountancy” of the official statistics office. Indec, indicated that consumer prices last year were below 10%.

Moyano head of the teamsters and the CGT is a crucial ally of the Kirchners, but is also sufficiently independent and powerful as to question junior ministers and officials from the Argentine cabinet.

Although inflation is a taboo word for the Argentine government, President Cristina Kirchner has campaigned for controlled food prices with different sectors promoting the consumption of pork, chicken and fish to help contain food inflation.

She has gone as far as stating that pork or barbecued piglet “is better than Viagra”, of which she can give evidence following the experience of a weekend with her husband former president Nestor Kirchner.