The mega-increase of 16.1% applied by Petrobras in cooking gas since last Friday (11) has already been passed on to consumers in the state of São Paulo.
With that, the average price of the cylinder is R$ 150 and the resellers are splitting the value in up to ten times on the credit card, according to Robson Carneiro dos Santos, president of Sergás (Union of Gas Reseller Companies).
According to Santos, there were no long lines in search of gas in the capital of São Paulo, as seen before, because the increase was “sudden”. In addition, the unionist attributes the low demand to the fall in the purchasing power of consumers, which has been happening since 2014 and went crazy with the pandemic.
In order not to lose customers, the resellers are splitting the value of the cylinder on the credit card in up to ten times. “We are reinventing ourselves. Today, we sell gas in installments, in six installments, or up to ten times on the card. It’s absurd, something you have to use every 30 days,” he says.
A survey of prices carried out by the ANP (Agência Nacional do Petróleo) shows that the average value of a gas cylinder in the country was 102.42 in the week of March 6th to 12th. The minimum value was R$ 78 and the maximum, R$ 140. In the state of São Paulo, the cylinder cost R$ 100.04, on average, and in the capital of São Paulo, at R$ 97.09.
The rises in cooking gas were constant in 2021, to keep up with international oil market quotes. According to Petrobras, however, the gas readjustment last Friday took place after 152 days at the same price. The last high was on October 9, 2021.
Data from Sergás, which represents a base of 9,800 resellers in the state of SP, point to a crisis in the sector, with a 20 to 25% drop in cooking gas consumption, in addition to 40% layoffs in the last two years, with the pandemic and changes in consumer habits.
On the one hand, there are those who don’t have money for gas and end up using firewood for cooking, on the other hand, there are families who opt for pots and other electrical utensils.
Santos also says that the readjustments in other fuels announced by the government also affect resellers, since it is more expensive to deliver the product. The difference between the delivery price and the withdrawal price can be up to R$20, depending on the region.
“The sector is going through a very big transformation. The cost is very expensive. Gasoline and IPVA have gone up. People are changing, taking off the streets, and the consumer is having to go to the warehouse to get it”, he says.
On the east side, Edimar Bezerra Lins, 55, who owns a small gas cylinder resale, is trying to survive. “This is the biggest increase we’ve had in almost 20 years. And whenever there is an increase, we pass on. The profit margin never changes, but we pass on so as not to be at a loss,” he says.
In your region, the 13-kilogram cylinder is sold today for values between R$120 and R$130, after the R$10 increase with the Petrobras adjustment. According to him, on Thursday (10), the day the measures were announced, it was no longer possible to buy gas in his region to resell. “Usually, the day before they hold it and we can’t even buy it”, he says.
If the consumer withdraws the gas, he gives a discount of R$ 10, as he manages to reduce costs with fuel and the vehicle for delivery. According to him, in his region, there has been a 40% drop in gas consumption in the last 20 years, which makes it impossible to have an employee. “I sell and deliver. You can’t have an employee, because if you do, you have to pay everything right and I can’t.”
The micro-entrepreneur says that the decrease in consumption is linked to several factors, in addition to the lower purchasing power in recent years, there is the pandemic, the replacement of bottled gas with piped gas in the buildings of Cohab (São Paulo Metropolitan Housing Company) close to your business and changing consumer habits, who use electrical equipment to cook or go out to eat.
Government gas voucher is not enough
The federal government’s payment policy for Auxílio Gás is not being sufficient either for families or for the sector, according to Santos. The program, which gives a voucher of R$52 to low-income families, began to be valid at the end of December.
The unionist says that, as the money is paid directly into the beneficiary’s account, the amount is not always reverted to the purchase of cooking cylinders.
“When you insert the gas voucher as an aid, the money does not go directly into the consumer’s hand to buy gas. As he needs so many other things, he spends on food and other necessities. distributors, because the objective is not being reached”, he says.
The value is not fixed and corresponds to half of the average price of the gas cylinder, according to the ANP survey based on the last six months. The measure serves 5.4 million.
Families enrolled in CadÚnico with monthly per capita income (per family member) less than or equal to half a minimum wage (R$ 550 this year) are entitled to the gas allowance. Those who have members in the BPC also receive.
Last year, Governor João Doria (PSDB) even paid, in São Paulo, a gas voucher for low-income families. There were three installments in the amount of R$ 100, starting in July. The measure reached 426,900 families that were already part of CadÚnico.
Restaurants must pass readjustment gradually
Bars and restaurants were also taken by surprise with the rise in gas and, for fear of further damage, should gradually pass the adjustment on to consumers, according to Joaquim Saraiva, president of Abrasel-SP (Brazilian Association of Bars and Restaurants). “It won’t be an immediate transfer, it will be gradual and this should have an interval between 30 and 60 days”, he says.
Saraiva says that the sector had been recovering losses from the pandemic, which reached 20%. According to him, growth after the relaxation of the rules against Covid-19 was close to the 20% lost and, now, he hopes that there is a stabilization.
The sector should be affected not only by the readjustment in fuels, which includes gas, gasoline and diesel oil, but also by the reflexes of these increases, which should reach food and other inputs. As for the war, his assessment is that, as it started 15 days ago, there are still no reflections in the restaurants.
“We were in an evolution of growth at that moment. As the war started just 15 days ago, we still haven’t felt this drop in movement, but now, with these increases that are coming, we still don’t know how the market will behave. Let’s hope it stabilizes and stays where we are.”
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