Bottled water rises faster than inflation

With the thermometer exceeding 30 degrees in most of the national territory, water purifiers and bottlers have been raising their prices faster than inflation for two years in a row.

The National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi) announced that inflation reached 4.8% during the first half of May, while bottled water became 5.7% more expensive.

The price of liquid accumulates 22 months winning the race against the also called poor people’s tax, specifically starting in July 2022.

Water had never exceeded inflation for so long since 2003, when records of this product began in Inegi.

Bonafont, Ciel, Epura, and Perrier are some of the brands preferred by Mexicans.

Behind the increase in water and other items are the high inflation rates of recent years, said the chief economist for Rankia Latin America, Humberto Calzada.

“In the particular case of water, the weather situation also influences, because high temperatures caused a greater demand for this product, since people want to hydrate, which has brought with it a shortage of water in some parts of the country,” he explained in an interview. with EL UNIVERSAL.

“The scarcity of water forces producers and purifiers to raise their prices, so, if droughts and high temperatures continue, prices will rise even more in the following years. We are talking about a global problem,” he added. Road.

To put it in perspective, at the end of the last six-year term, a liter of bottled water cost an average of 1.55 pesos in urban areas, but now you have to spend 2.11, that is, it has increased by 36.7% since the so-called Fourth Transformation began. according to the National Council for the Evaluation of Social Development Policy (Coneval).

Under Ernesto Zedillo Ponce de León was the last time that Mexicans’ pockets suffered a more severe impact than today, as bottled water skyrocketed from 25 to 89 cents, an increase of 252.6% in the similar period.

The National Alliance of Small Merchants (Anpec) relates the rise in water to the drought suffered by two thirds of the country.

The research company, Expert Market Research, estimates that the Mexican bottled water market reached a value of 17.2 billion dollars in 2023 and will reach 24.27 billion in 2032.

The main factors contributing to the development of the national market They are the greatest demand in offices and restaurantspeople’s growing awareness of the importance of drinking water, as well as the increase in the tourism sector, notes Expert Market Research.

The largest bottled water companies are Danone, The Coca-Cola Company, PepsiCo, Nestlé, Keurig Dr Pepper, Agua, Vida y Nutrición, and The Keith Corporation.

*The price of bottled water has risen 36.7% since the beginning of the six-year term, reports Coneval.