There has been a lot of buzz surrounding today’s meeting at Maximos Mansion. And for good reason.
Joining Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the table today at noon will be SEV President Spyros Theodoropoulos, SEVT President Ioannis Giotis, Ioannis Masoutis, president of the Hellenic Supermarket Association; Takis Theodorikakos, Minister of Development; and Despoina Tsangari, director of the Independent Authority for Market Control and Consumer Protection.
The meeting is taking place at a time when inflationary pressures persist, while the fragile ceasefire in the Middle East is being tested once again following the airstrikes of the past few hours, reigniting fears of a new surge in energy costs and further disruptions to global supply chains. In this context, the agenda of the meeting leaves no doubt that the focus is on inflation. This is an issue that continues to put pressure on households and erode the government’s approval ratings just a few months before the national elections.
Rumors of an informal agreement—“price cuts in exchange for lifting the price cap”—are circulating widely in the market. However, sources familiar with the matter insist that this picture is overly simplified. Not only because no one wants to appear to be haggling over government measures, but also because such an arrangement could raise questions even regarding its compatibility with competition rules.
Behind the scenes, the scenario of a new “basket” is resurfacing, this time under the Prime Minister’s Office as a tool to keep prices in check.
The composition of the meeting also indicates that the agenda extends far beyond supermarket shelves. The presence of SEV President Spyros Theodoropoulos—who is participating in his institutional capacity and not as a representative of the food industries he owns—suggests a much broader agenda. According to informed sources, the topics on the agenda will include competitiveness, operating costs, collective bargaining agreements, and investments.
Whether anything more than a joint statement of good intentions will emerge will become clear after the meeting at the Maximos Mansion, which has taken the lead in shaping the discussions and decisions.
In any case, let’s be honest, the Maximos Mansion would hardly have invested so much political capital in today’s meeting—with the prime minister himself personally taking the initiative—if there weren’t already a package of specific measures in the works, ready to be announced or set in motion.
After all, today’s meeting follows a series of discussions that began in the first ten days of June under Development Minister Takis Theodorikakos. As Euro2day.gr had revealed at the time, all scenarios were on the table—ranging from a two-month extension of the profit margin cap to targeted price reductions on essential goods starting in September, all under the “umbrella” of the “national social agreement.”