MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

WaPo tells Americans not to fret over local inflation: Argentina is worse off

Inflation transforms the way people spend, save and think, the WaPo said

An article published by The Washington Post highlights Argentina's inflationary tradition and suggests US citizens should take a look at the South American country's “way of economic life” after prices locally rose around 7% in one year.

“Inflation transforms the way people spend, save and think. That's true now for some in the United States, where prices rose 7% last year, the fastest pace in nearly 40 years,“ the newspaper argued.

But that ”has been the reality in Argentina for decades, where inflation exceeded 50% last year, and it is expected to be equally high in 2022,“ the publication went on as it hinted Americans would have to monitor this clase more closely in order to get used to coexisting with high inflation.

“The long and obstinate march of prices in this South American nation has inspired a series of strategies to limit the damage” in a country where “saving money means that its value falls,” the report added.

“The monetary cost of rising prices, according to analysts, also has a psychological cost: the feeling of uncertainty about the value of goods and services, and the fear of spending more than necessary,” the WaPo piece pointed out.

The Washington Post quotes Argentine economist Marina Dal Poggetto, who explained that “in the United States an inflationary process is brewing, although from low levels,“ while ”in Argentina, we come from many years of high inflation, which ends up twisting the mentality.”

Guillermo Oliveto, another expert quoted by the newspaper from the US capital, spoke of an “inflationary culture” where “almost everyone loses with inflation, and people are on their guard all the time.”