Hundreds of poor Argentines have turned to selling their hair to a wig factory to survive a huge economic crisis, taking advantage of a plunging currency that priced imports out of the market.
G.A. Peluca factory, in the north-western town of Rosario, opted for supplies of locally grown "natural" hair when it faced a shortage of Russian synthetic wigs after the peso plunged in value by nearly two thirds this year.
The market rate for locally-grown human hair is around per five ounces, a company official said. All hair must be 1 foot long to be fit for the wig.
"We searched for natural hair in the local market to get a better and cheaper product than synthetic hair," the official said.
Rosario, one of the poorest cities in this South American country of 36 million people, was a center of food looting in December that overthrew then-President Fernando de la Rua and heralded months of political and economic chaos.
Nearly one in two Argentines live on a few dollars a day and one in five of the workforce is unemployed after a four- year recession in Latin America's third largest economy.
(Agencies)
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由于近来阿根廷遭遇严重的经济危机,货币贬值造成该国商品进口数量急剧下降,假发制造厂家也被切断了货源,于是数以百计的贫苦阿根廷人为了糊口,纷纷将自己的头发卖给假发制造厂。
由于今年的经济危机造成阿根廷比索大幅度贬值,位于阿根廷西北部罗萨里奥市的G.A. Peluca假发制造厂无法继续进口俄罗斯的用于制造假发的合成纤维,因此现在这个工厂只得选择当地"自然生长"的头发作为原料。
该公司的一位负责人说,目前阿根廷市场上自然生长的头发价格是每5盎司11美元左右。同时为了符合假发制作的要求,所收购的头发长度必须要达到1英尺。
这位负责人说:"由于合成纤维的假发制作成本较高,所以现在我们改为在当地收购头发,这样生产出来的假发不但质量会更好而且价格会更便宜。"
罗萨里奥市有人口3600万,是阿根廷这个南美洲国家中最贫困的城市之一,也是去年12月份哄抢食物事件的中心地区。正是那次事件造成了当时阿根廷总统德拉鲁阿的下台,并且让该国连续几个月时间都处在政治和经济的混乱状态之中。
阿根廷曾经是拉丁美洲的第三经济大国,但是自从该国4年前开始遭受经济衰退至今,已经是今非昔比。如今,有一半的阿根廷人每天仅靠几美元过活,有五分之一的劳动力处在失业状态。
(中国日报网站译)
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