The energy race continues to push prices and erode the spending capacity of Italians. In the second half of 2022 alone, 12.1 billion purchasing power is going to be lost, about 470 euros less per family in just six months, as estimated by Confesercenti Economic Office. Inflation peaks in the autumn. The deterioration is due, in the first place, to record increases in energy prices over the summer to be discharged right on the autumn bills, bringing the price increase to the maximum levels of the year: the inflation rate will rise on average over the next three months to at least 9.1%, more than half a point more than the already high figure for the summer period (+8.4%) and three points more compared to the spring period. In this context, the priority remains to curb the energy rate race, so as to preserve the purchasing power of households and contain the boom in fixed costs for businesses, which is the main driver of price increases. However, the probable spending collapse poses a further criticality for commercial distribution activities, expecting to experience the coldest Christmas – from a consumption point of view – since 2020, the year of the pandemic.