According to a survey carried out by the Valle del Cauca section of Fenalco, entrepreneurs report losses in sales that, on average, amount to 80% of their normal volume of income.
According to the Valle del Cauca section of Fenalco (the merchants’ union), the national strike has left losses of $ 1.2 billion in the commercial sector of Cali.
In a survey conducted by the union, 96% of merchants assured that their sales have been affected by the days of protests and blockades, while 84% reported that they have closed their establishments, either totally or partially . On the other hand, 61% assured that they have suffered episodes of vandalism or looting.
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The survey was conducted by consulting 957 companies in the city and its metropolitan area.
According to Fenalco’s figures, the decrease in sales has been, on average, 80%. And this can have long-term consequences not only on the sector, but in general on the economic recovery in times of pandemic, since commerce is responsible for 23% of job creation in the city (more than 270,000 jobs) the guild warned.
According to the survey, some of the main concerns of merchants revolve around possible closures of their companies, high prices in raw materials (derived from blockades) and the postponement of investments or purchase orders by national and international clients. international
It is worth remembering that, according to the most recent data from DANE, wholesale and retail trade experienced a national growth of 5.5% between the fourth quarter of 2020 and the first of 2021.
Likewise, the entity assured that primary and tertiary activities (which group lines such as agriculture, commerce and transport, among others) managed to reach the production levels recorded in February 2020, before the arrival of the pandemic.
It is also worth remembering that Cali was one of the worst hit cities in terms of poverty growth. According to the most recent data on monetary poverty revealed by DANE, this indicator went from 21.9% to 36.6% between 2019 and 2020 in Cali.
