- All for $200
- The other side
Although international postal operators expected that enthusiasm for purchases abroad would weaken in the second half of the year due to the recession in the second half of the year in contrast to the decline in local consumption, purchases abroad again reached the historical high in November 100 million US dollars.
The “Rest” category, which accounts for 95% of purchases by courier in the trade exchange report prepared by Indec, recorded an increase of 240.6% year-on-yearin the last month of the year, doubling the average of 50 million from the first half of the year.
The sharply increasing trend in purchases abroad creates a dilemma: while consumers get better prices, local industries collapse. In addition, they warn that due to high levels of openness in the face of a sign of improving purchasing power such as the premium, “everything will be imported.”
The tax advantage plays a key role in this dispute as the government has taken measures with lower import duties and an expansion of the limit value $1000 to $3000 a year ago, in contrast to high tax burden on local manufacturers.
On the larger quota of bringing goods from abroad, ARCA added: $400 franchisethereby exempting the payment of taxes on this amount and significantly reducing the tax costs compared to the previous regime.
There are more to the official impulse Promotions and discounts offered by international postal companies to attract more and more customers.
In addition to traditional purchases, there is another alternative that is increasing the wave of purchases abroad Record that as a “gift” at the end of the year he reduced his commission on orders of up to $200“The range most chosen by Argentine shoppers during the Christmas period,” the company said.
All for $200
During the holiday season, demand at Grabr — which connects shoppers with travelers bringing goods directly from abroad — is heavily focused on products priced under $200, an assortment that includes some of them the most desired gifts.
Some of the best-selling items on the platform include Sneakers, beauty tech, wearables and smart devices such as New Balance 9060, Dyson styling tools or Google TV 4K.
In numbers, for example, the Plaud NotePin dictation machine at a price of $127 On Grabr, it can cost the equivalent of almost $295 in Argentina.
“In a context of economic uncertainty, buyers are prioritizing practical giftswith high perceived value, and try to keep spending under control. We also see a clear preference for Pay in dollars to gain predictability and avoid volatility the local currency,” they explain from Grabr.
Given the Christmas 2025Grabr expects an increase in activity compared to previous months, driven by the seasonality of gifts and the decision of many users to plan their purchases before the end of the year. “This trend reflects broader behavior: buy earlier“Choose meaningful gifts and take advantage of opportunities to access international products at more competitive prices,” the application says.
The other side
Although monthly inflation consolidated at a 2.5% in Novemberthe reports from Scentia And NielsenIQ I agree that mass consumption is here to staye in negative territory or with an extremely weak recovery.
Price stability has improved social morale, but has not been enough to restore household financial resources.
Scentia saw a decline in consumption in November 1.8% compared to October and a slight decrease compared to the previous year 0.1%. The report highlights that the main brake is the Deterioration in real income and increase in fixed costsOperating systems (as services), forcing consumers to buy fewer units and choose smaller presentations.
According to the data analyzed by Osvaldo Del Río, the large supermarket chains Thanks to aggressive advertising measures, they are able to assert themselves better, while local companies suffer more from the effects of adaptation.
For its part, NielsenIQ notes that consumer confidence has increased 46 points (an increase of 9% per month), but this does not translate into sales.
After 2024 with a significant decline of 16%, there is little progress to be seen in 2025 2%which lost strength towards the end of the year. Contrary to other reports
In this sense, NielsenIQ points out independent self-service showed greater momentum (growth of 6% in the last two months) as their shopping basket became one 10% cheaper than in major stores, attracting consumers looking for the cheapest ticket.
Both consulting companies have noticed a profound change in purchasing behavior: the phenomenon “Downtrading” (Migration towards cheap brands) is already widespread.
The recovery for 2026 looks slow and moderate and is entirely conditional herethat salaries manage to beat inflation and that the pressure of tariffs on public services relieves basic consumption capacity.
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