In Mexico, as in the US, groceries are getting more expensive because of COVID-19, but the pandemic is not necessarily the direct cause. The wholesale price of strawberries in Mexico, for instance, has climbed sharply this spring, but it started rising in February, well before the coronavirus really became a major issue in the country.
In fact, the rise in wholesale strawberry prices was driven by a precipitous fall in the peso, which is currently at an all time low relative to the US dollar.
Since Mexico exports a significant proportion of its fresh produce to the US, wholesale buyers in Mexico are essentially bidding against US importers, and as can be seen in this display, shipping point prices into the US are within normal range this year. The fall in the value of the Mexican peso vs the US dollar, however, means this translates into a higher peso price than in prior periods. Meanwhile, retail prices of strawberries in the US have been trending below average this year (relative to their average price since 2007).
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