MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Indec says Argentina's inflation in May stood at 1.5%

Caputo celebrated the news saying his country has the best president in the world

Argentina's Consumer Price Index (CPI) recorded a 1.5% increase last month, the National Institute of Statistics and Census (Indec) announced Thursday. It was the lowest monthly inflation rate since May 2020 and closer to 1.4% from November 2017.

 These figures marked a significant drop from April's 2.8% and a yoy CPI of 43.5%, the lowest since March 2021. Cumulative inflation for the first five months of 2025 was 13.3%, the lowest for this period since 2020.

Key factors contributing to the slowdown included stable fuel prices, moderated tariffs, and a less volatile dollar (up 1.5% in May). The Communication sector saw the highest increase (4.1%), while Food and non-alcoholic beverages went up by 0.5%, followed by Transport's 0.4%.

Core inflation was 2.2%, seasonal categories fell by 2.7%, and regulated items rose by 1.3%. The Basic Food Basket (CBA) decreased by 0.4%, and the Total Basic Food Basket (CBT) rose by 0.1%, leading to a poverty rate drop to 34.7% (December 2024–May 2025), per Universidad Torcuato Di Tella (UTDT) estimates.

Inflation in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (CABA) was 1.6%, down from 2.3% in April. Analysts project June inflation to remain below 2% (around 1.6%), with annual inflation potentially closing at 25–27%, the lowest since 2017, driven by fiscal prudence and exchange rate stability, though risks remain due to trade imbalances and IMF reserve targets.

With inflation not below 2% since July 2020, the Libertarian Government celebrated the news. Economy Minister Luis Toto Caputo posted on X that Argentina's economy was “growing at 6% annually” and claimed that his country had “the best president in the world.”