Political activists allied with Argentina's government increased pressure on retailers in a very personal way on Friday: They plastered the city with poster-size photos of retail executives, accusing them of fueling the inflation that officials are scrambling to tame.
The posters, featuring head shots of executives from the local units of Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Carrefour and other companies, were posted on walls, bus stops and newspaper kiosks across the capital.
"These are the people who steal your salary," the posters say. "They raised the price of everything to take your money." The companies either declined to comment or didn't return calls about the posters. ...
"The president has asked people to pressure businessmen who raise prices, so these posters should come as no surprise," said Nicolás Solari, a political analyst at PoliarquÃa, a local polling firm. "This sends a terrible message to the business community and is unlikely to positively resolve any economic problems. It signals the government's weakness on this issue." ...
On Friday, though, Mrs. Kirchner's cabinet chief, Jorge Capitanich, slammed economists and other analysts for blaming the government's economic policies for rising inflation. He equated economists with hired mercenaries representing private-sector interests looking to destabilize the economy.
"I know all of them," Mr. Capitanich said. "They are all undercover agents. Argentines should know that independent, objective economists do not exist. I want to say emphatically that when unscrupulous businessmen raise prices, it has absolutely nothing to do with macroeconomic variables."