Prices of electronics In Argentina, it is usually higher compared to other countries, so it is common for many to travel to Chile, Paraguay and the United States to save.
Louis Galli, President and CEO of Newsan Group, explained in Leaders Meeting 2025 to Historian Why do electronic product values rise so much?. He specifically emphasized two important aspects: Taxes and smuggling.
Why are electronics so expensive in Argentina?
In response to a question from El Cronista about how they can compete with imported products, Gali He explained: “Today, when you look at the prices of our products before the Argentine cost, they are very similar to prices in the region.“.
However, he stressed that the “value chain” after production with “National, regional and municipal taxes make it uncompetitive.”. For this reason, Electronics prices rise due to the higher prices that companies must pay.
Big problem: smuggling
The CEO of “Newsan” confirmed that there is a “major competitor” to the Argentine electronic industries and other sectors, which is “smuggling“.
Specifically, he explained that the same thing is happening in the field of perfumes, where his collection represents key Arab brands that are very trendy. He said: “Today, more than 60% of perfumes sold in the country are smuggled.”
The same situation happens with cell phones. “One in three Mobile phones That which is unloaded is contraband. You can check it by IMEI.
In this regard, he referred to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development report, which measures the situation of each country with regard to smuggling. The list of 158 countries placed Argentina in 120th place. He said, “Do you remember that it caused us a lot of shame because we were very bad in the indicators of reputation and corruption? Well, today we have to be ashamed of the indicator of our dealings with the issue of smuggling.”
Consequences of smuggling in electronics and in the country
Jalli stressed that the government is “clear about the smuggling situation,” although “a lot of resources are also needed to control land borders.” At the same time, he stressed that. This problem affects you in three ways:
- governmentAbout 7,500 million US dollars failed to be collected as a result of smuggling.
- industry: Destruction and unfair competition
- consumer-The products you purchase do not have warranty or after-sales support.
He added: “This is the main scourge and we are convinced that if this problem is solved, we will be happy to continue competing but providing equal opportunities.”
We want to meet you!
Register for free At El Cronista for an experience tailored just for you.