Argentina inflation picked up more than expected after key vote

Inflation accelerated for the third straight month in Argentina even after President Javier Milei’s midterm victory as beef, transport and energy prices rose.

Consumer prices rose 2.5 percent in November, above the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg, and up from October’s 2.3 percent reading. Annual inflation picked up to 31.4 percent from 31.3 percent, the first increase since it peaked four months after Milei took office, according to government data published Thursday.

Fuel, energy and transport costs all spiked in real terms in November. The currency, meanwhile, stayed relatively stable, compared with a nearly five-percent drop in October amid electoral volatility ahead of the October 26 vote.

Argentina’s economy was widely expected to contract in the third quarter, but 0.5 percent month-on-month growth in September despite the turbulence took analysts by surprise. The statistics agency revised up multiple monthly prints.

Milei’s libertarian party won the midterm election by a wide margin, sending bonds soaring and stabilising the currency. The new Congress, where Milei now holds 95 of the 257 seats in the lower house and 20 of 72 Senate seats, took office Wednesday. Milei sent an ambitious labour reform earlier Thursday.

Argentina is expected to finish the year with 30.4 percent annual inflation, according to the latest Central Bank survey of economists. Growth is expected at 4.4 percent, revised up from 3.9 percent last month.