Argentine Cabinet Chief Guillermo Francos announced Wednesday that a new methodology for calculating the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to measure inflation more accurately is to be implemented shortly by the National Institute of Statistics and Census (Indec), pending institutional review and an awareness campaign.
Add your comment!A Datafolha survey published Sunday revealed that 58% of Brazilians have reduced food purchases due to rising inflation, which hit 5.48% annually by March 2025. When measured amongst the poorest strata of society (people with an income of up to two minimum wages), 67% were forced to adopt contingency measures.
Add your comment!After Argentina's National Institute of Statistics and Census (Inec) announced Friday that the National Consumer Price Index (IPC) in February reached 2.4%, analysts in Buenos Aires foresee it to show another acceleration in March, potentially exceeding February's core inflation rate of 2.9%.
Brazil's Chamber of Foreign Trade's (Camex) Executive Management Committee (Gecex) gave its nod Thursday to the temporary removal of import taxes on nine food items to lower prices for local consumers. The tax exemption applies to boneless frozen beef, roasted and unroasted coffee beans, corn (not for sowing), certain uncooked pasta, cookies, extra virgin olive oil, crude sunflower oil, cane sugar, and preserved sardines (limited to 7,500 tons). Taxes ranging between 7.2% and 32% have been lowered to 0% in a move to curb inflation. The measure is effective starting Friday. Authorities insisted it would only be for a limited time.
Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva highlighted Wednesday that his country's economy has outperformed expectations in the past two years when it reached 3.2% in 2023 and 3.8% in 2024 amid projections of +0.8% and +2.5% respectively.
Argentina's inflation in January 2025 stood at 2.2%, down from 2.7% in December, the National Institute of Statistics and Census (Indec) said in a report released Thursday, which also showed yoy values of 84.5%. January's was the lowest Consumer Price Index (CPI) since July 2020 - 1.9% amid the Covid-19 pandemic - and also the best under Javier Milei, who took office on Dec. 10, 2023. The President's best previous CPI was in November 2024 at 2.4%.
The Focus Bulletin released earlier this week by Brazil's Central Bank (BCB) projected a 5.08% inflation for this year in South America's largest country. The new prediction represented a slight twitch from last week's 5% National Consumer Price Index (IPCA). Meanwhile, Brazil's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) - the sum of goods and services produced in the country - is expected to grow by 2.04% in 2025, a slight improvement from 2.02% the week before.
Argentina's Consumer Price Index (CPI) went up 2.7% in December 2024 for an accumulated 117.8% last year, the National Institute of Statistics and Census (Indec) said Tuesday in a report released in Buenos Aires. It was the lowest monthly rate since July 2020 amid strict Covid-19 lockdowns, when inflation reached 1.9%.
Paraguay's Consumer Price Index (CPI) grew 0.7% this month, which represented a setback from 0.3% in the same month last year. Nevertheless, Asunción confirmed closing 2024 with a 3.8% inflation, barely over 2023's 3.7%, according to the Central Bank (BCP), and therefore within the target range of 4%, it was explained Monday. On a brighter note, core inflation stood at 0.3% in December for a yearly variation of 3.4%, which meant progress from the 3.6% registered in 2023.
Uruguay's Central Bank (BCU) Monetary Policy Committee decided Monday to raise the TPM benchmark interest rate from 8.5% to 8.75% in a move to make inflation and expectations meet at 4.5% annually over the last 24 months. It was the first twitch to the TPM since April when it was cut from from 9%.