MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina's annual inflation during 2018 estimated at 48%, highest since 1991

The foreign exchange market volatility had a direct impact on last year's inflation rate and probably in the coming months

Argentina's stats office Indec, is scheduled to announce December's inflation and for the whole of a very volatile 2018 next Tuesday, with estimates ranging at 48%, the highest in the country since 1991. November's Consumer Price Index was 3.2%.

In anticipation of Tuesday several private organizations have already made public their estimates, and one of them financed by Argentina's powerful unions, The Workers Statistics Institute has already announce that inflation in December was 3.1% and 47.8% for the twelve months of last year.

A previous extraordinary figure was in 2002 with 41%, the year when the Argentine economy melted and the country would fall into default.

Another inflation index, this one from the Congress IPC, which was released by one of the opposition groups in the legislative branch, revealed the CPI for 2018 was 48%.

Although the November index was below those of September and October indicating a descending tendency, they were still above those registered at the beginning of last year when the foreign exchange markets was impregnated of volatility, said the Congress IPC.

“Furthermore in the last six months prices in Argentina have risen 28.7%, at an average 4.3% monthly, which makes an annual projection of 65.5%”

Another private estimate from consultants Ecolatina puts 2018 inflation at 48%, almost doubling the 2017 rate. “Not only was it the highest rate so far under the government of president Mauricio Macri, but also one of the highest increases since 1991”