Italian consumers call for buying strike

Consumer groups asked Italians to keep their wallets closed Monday to protest inflation that has especially hit food, fuel and transportation prices.

We intend to stage a street demonstration and to organize a new spending strike against a political class which today is asking for the support of those same voters who they've been fleecing until now, Elio Lannutti, head of one consumer advocacy group said.

The spending strike is meant to halt all food purchases for a day and has the blessing of a leading Italian farmers' union, ANSA reported.

A recent report indicated inflation in Italy hit 4.8 percent in the month of January.

Consumer groups staged a similar protest in September, asking Italians to skip one day purchasing pasta, milk and bread. If that was unavoidable, they asked for consumers to boycott pasta purchases for a day and 67 percent of consumers surveyed outside supermarkets said they had done so.

Workers unions have also called for a strike to protest price hikes.

The Italian government responded to the outcry by creating a special ombudsman position to oversee price hikes, ANSA reported.

The ombudsman would monitor markets for unjustified price hikes, the report said.

Copyright 2008 by United Press International