The national CPI grew by +31.5% in 2025, while the CPI for home appliances in Buenos Aires fell by -6.6%, according to a sectoral report compiled by the consultancy Vectorial. For example, a 6-kilogram front-loading washing machine that cost 750,000 pesos last year now costs 500,000 pesos. Measured in units, sales fell by as much as 18.6% when comparing the last quarter of 2025 with the same period of the previous year. Retailers have a large stock of home appliances, and some are beginning to realign their objectives. The portfolio of imported products also grew, mainly from China and Turkey. Sales of 'white goods' (refrigerators, washing machines, dryers, dishwashers, ovens, and stoves), 'brown goods' (including televisions, music equipment, and video players), 'grey goods' (computers), and small home appliances recorded declines in the fourth quarter of 2025 compared to the same quarter of the previous year of -10.1%, -22.1%, -26.8%, and -25.2%, respectively, according to a report by the consultancy Vectorial. Manufacturers such as Peabody, Electrolux, and retail chains like Frávega, Cetrogar, and Megatone are facing a bottleneck in profitability and finance that puts their continuity at risk, or directly leads to their demise, as was the recent case with the refrigerator factory. Delinquency. On average, delinquency rates in commercial chains, even those that have been operating in the market for decades, reach 41%. In the case of Frávega, it tripled: it went from 13% to 39% between 2024 and the end of 2025, according to data from the Central Bank of Argentina. Cetrogar remains high on the list when evaluating customer delinquency: it is around 48% (against 17% the previous year). Megatone is one step below: it suffers an irregularity in the financing granted of around 43%, closer to the industry average. Although high, the chain Carsa appears in the ranking with a delinquency rate below the rest. Buenos Aires, March 5 (NA) -- The drop in prices of home appliances and offers through supermarkets is not yielding results in sales, in a context where delinquency in financing for the purchase of smart TVs, refrigerators, and washing machines more than doubled: it went from 14.8% to 41.2%, according to official figures. The prices of these products fell by 6.6% on average, according to a survey by the Government of the City of Buenos Aires, accessed by the Argentine News Agency. By the end of last year, it reached 38% against 15% the previous year. The lowest delinquency rate is that of Naldo Lombardi, around 25% (against 5% the previous year). In Coppel, which in recent years had a higher delinquency rate than the average and is not exclusively dedicated to financing the purchase of home appliances, the irregularity reaches 70%. The cost of credits, according to its official website, also exceeds the average: for a loan, the company has a Total Financial Cost (CFT) of 880% per year. A line to buy furniture is cheaper: 250% per year. IP Clearly, these costs far exceed the annual inflation and the projected income of the majority of salaried workers.
