VAT increase, indicated as possibly unavoidable by Bratušek, would make companies even less competitive and cause "an additional drop in economic activity in Slovenia", the TZS wrote in a press release.

The chamber stressed that a third of the revenues in the Slovenian economy, which contracted by 2.3% last year, was generated by companies related to commerce. Thus special care is needed when adopting measures that directly affect purchasing power.

The TZS pointed out that when excluding petrol, sales indices showed an average drop of almost 15% in retail between 2008 and 2012.

It moreover highlighted the VAT revenue secured with spending by individuals and companies from neighbouring countries and pointed out that the present VAT rate - 20% general and 8.5% reduced - was comparable to the one in Austria and Italy.

According to the chamber, a VAT increase already showed negative results in Hungary, while it also runs contrary to policies of successful European countries who are tackling the crisis with measures that boost domestic consumption.