“And they become more important during harder times.”In Argentina, an examination of candy imports and exports in the sweets sector can provide some insight into the state of the economy. And though lipstick sales decreased around the time of the 2008 Great Recession, nail polish sales increased by 65 percent. In their recession of 2001, lipstick sales increased, prompting Leonard Lauder, chairman emeritus of the Estée Lauder makeup company, to coin the phrase “the lipstick index” to explain this improbable rise. Overall candy and cookie consumption is down in Argentina, and exports have fallen by 21.4 percent. According to a report from the Research on the Economic Sectors (IES), for the first five months of this year, imports on sweets have grown by 27.5 percent.

Source: The Bubble July 26, 2016 18:56 UTC