UGT considers it "indispensable" to reach an income agreement and asks CEOE for "responsibility"

MADRID, 30 Ago. (EUROPA PRESS) -

UGT considers it "essential" to reach a "fair" income pact, in which companies and workers "contribute equally", to contribute to the reduction of inflation, which in August stood at 10.4%, according to the advanced data, published this Tuesday by the National Institute of Statistics (INE).

The union also asks the Government to establish a price control for basic goods and services, so as to avoid speculation with the needs of working families.

Likewise, to contain the loss of purchasing power of workers and maintain consumption, UGT urges the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (CEOE) to "be responsible with citizens" and "revert to families all the benefits that have accumulated companies during these years.

The union points out in its statement that inflation responds to the "frozen situation" of collective bargaining with employers; the increase in interest rates by the European Central Bank (ECB), which influences the cost of variable-rate mortgages; and the impact on the economy of the war in Ukraine.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose one tenth in August compared to the previous month, but moderated its year-on-year rate four tenths, to 10.4%, remaining at levels never seen for more than 30 years, according to data advanced of the INE.

The data for August, which must be confirmed by Statistics in the middle of next month, is four tenths lower than the peak reached last July, when the CPI stood at 10.8%, its highest level since September 1984.

With this moderation of four tenths, inflation ends a streak of three consecutive months of increases in its interannual rate: in May it climbed to 8.7%; in June it exceeded the feared double digits (10.2%) and in July it shot up to 10.8%. August is therefore the third consecutive month in which inflation exceeds double figures.