Relief for Milei as inflation in Argentina slows for first time in 11 months

After a string of negative headlines and plunging polling ratings, President Javier Milei has been cut a break – according to the INDEC national statistics bureau, inflation slowed in April for the first time in 11 months.

Data published by Argentina’s statistics agency on Thursday showed that consumer prices rose 2.6 percent last month, decelerating for the first time since May 2025.

INDEC’s consumer price index (CPI) indicates hikes of 12.3 percent this year, with inflation over the last 12 months totalling 32.4 percent.

April’s increases were led by transport (which rose 4.4 percent), education (up 4.2 percent) and communication (4.1 percent). 

Housing and utilities, clothing and footwear, household equipment and maintenance and restaurants and hotels all posted above average increases for the month.

At the other end of the scale was recreation and culture, which rose just one percent. Food and non-alcoholic beverages, a sector that normally weighs heavily on household budgets,  increased 1.5 percent. The preceding month, they had soared 3.4 percent.

The regional breakdown showed that inflation was at its highest in Greater Buenos Aires and the northeast of the country.

Regulated prices soared 3.4 percent, propelled by hikes in transport and electricity, while core inflation came in at 2.3 percent. Seasonal prices remained unchanged from March.

Separately, INDEC reported that a family of four needed an income of 1,469,768 pesos (around US$1,050 at the official exchange rate) in April to avoid falling into poverty, with 665,053 pesos (US$478) to be classified as living in extreme poverty.

The cost of the total basic basket (CBT), which defines the poverty line, rose by 2.5 percent month-on-month, whilst the basic food basket (CBA), which defines extreme poverty, increased by 1.1 percent, reported INDEC. 

Both increases were below the average inflation rate.

‘Back to normal’

President Milei cheered the release of the data, declaring in a post on social media that inflation was “back to normal” after months of acceleration. 

Confirmation that the upward trend has been broken is a major boost for the head of state and comes amid a string of negative headlines concerning corruption allegations, further austerity measures and his own plummeting popularity.

The figure was achieved “despite coup attempts by politicians and their business allies, claimed Milei on X, who also noted the impact of the “external shock” caused by the war in the Middle East.

Several top officials also weighed in to cheer INDEC’s news.

"The National CPI recorded a monthly change of 2.6 percent in April, broken down into a 2.3 percent rise in the core CPI, 4.7 percent in the regulated category and zero percent in seasonal items. The change in the overall level was the lowest since November last year, whilst core inflation was the lowest since October," said Economy Minister Luis Caputo in a post on X.

“Inflation in April stood at 2.6 percent, the lowest for the month of April since 2017, excluding, of course, the [Covid-19] lockdown period in 2020. The basic basket of goods, meanwhile, recorded a change of 1.1 percent – the lowest since August 2025,” noted Cabinet Chief Manuel Adorni in another post on social media. 

“Inflation is returning to a downward trend. God bless the Argentine Republic,” added the official, who is under investigation for alleged illicit enrichment by the courts.

On the streets of Buenos Aires, however, many shoppers felt that inflation is still on the rise.

“In this country, everything goes up [in price] every two minutes,” said Adriana García, a 60-year-old French tutor. She said the official figure was “a fabrication” that doesn’t “reflect everyday life.”

García complained in particular about transport prices, one of the biggest risers last month. Since May 1, a metro ticket in Buenos Aires has cost 1,490.36 pesos, around US$1.05.

"People don’t really feel the drop in inflation mainly because wages have lagged behind inflation," said economist Guido Zack.

Lowering runaway price hikes was one of Milei’s key campaign promises. When he took office in December 2023, annual inflation stood at around 211 percent and the La Libertad Avanza leader promptly devalued the peso. 

Two years on, following a draconian fiscal adjustment, inflation has fallen to around 32 percent – the lowest annual figure in eight years.

– TIMES/AFP/NA