Consumer sales down

[NewsWhore]

The president of ONEC, the association of shopping malls and large department stores in the DR, says they are already feeling the economic pinch in the shape of a lull in sales. Pedro Perez says that sales in January were lower than was expected and that the government would begin to feel the pinch when it collects less tax money in February. He said it is time to revise the 2009 National Budget with a focus on restructuring government spending. He also called for more capital spending to encourage job creation. Speaking on Telematutino 11 by Telesistema, he said that the investment in infrastructure would help reactivate the economy and create jobs. He also said that high interest rates have penalized the middle class, and called on banks to increase efficiency and to reduce the spread between loans and savings.

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