“If the Government or companies had to react immediately to the value of inflation, we would be constantly changing salaries and salary inflation would inevitably lead to inflation on inflation”, said António Saraiva, stressing that there must be “moderation”.

“We cannot be blind and think that the problem of inflation is solved by raising wages,” he added.

Asked about the impact of rising inflation on purchasing power, António Saraiva explained that people’s lack of purchasing power is similar to the problem faced by companies in the face of the “exponential increase in raw materials, their scarcity and high energy costs”.

“It is on our productivity and our economic growth that the sustainability of wages is based”, he explained, stating: “If we are going after inflation to raise wages, we cannot control it, we only boost it”.