Argentina's continued collapse by another Redditor in June 2023

[antipodean]

Can't help imagining this guy arriving as that vulgar gringo at Don Julio "OMG it's soooo cheap, I can literrrrrrally buy everthing on the menu and it is still cheaper than in New York, I like literrrraly own you" until he suddenly felt his real wealth wasn't so great when faced with price tags of some imported brand-name consumer goods and didn't understand how hotel pricing here works... and naturally thereafter everything else turns into war-rations, muggings and tourist scamming.

 

[HectorH]

It's actually funny because every Argentine who I know is spending their money ASAP, going to restaurants etc, doing things they usually wouldn't do, because they want to make sure they get their money's worth before it loses value vs the dollar.

 

[lunar]

Can't help imagining this guy arriving as that vulgar gringo at Don Julio "OMG it's soooo cheap, I can literrrrrrally buy everthing on the menu and it is still cheaper than in New York, I like literrrraly own you"

 

[antipodean]

It's actually funny because every Argentine who I know is spending their money ASAP, going to restaurants etc, doing things they usually wouldn't do, because they want to make sure they get their money's worth before it loses value vs the dollar.

El New York Times se refirió a la Argentina: “La inflación supera el 100% (y los restaurantes están repletos)”

El diario estadounidense publicó un artículo para explicar la paradoja de un consumo, especialmente gastronómico, que se sostiene más allá de la inestabilidad monetaria

www.infobae.com

“The boom, in a way, is a facade. Everyone seems to be having a good time. Yet in much of the country, Argentines are barely surviving and hunger is on the rise. And in the more affluent circles, the fever to go out is a symptom of the decline of the middle class that, unable to afford large purchases or trips, chooses to live in the here and now because they do not know what tomorrow will bring or if your money will be worth anything”, considered the article.

Same thing happens in Lebanon... Have a little cash. Can't really save. Can't put it towards your xmas dinner or summer holidays. Can't afford a new car. Can't afford a new home. Can't afford hefty services like private schools or healthcare plans like you could before. Can't afford a trip or shopping abroad... the only thing left to do is spend what you have "leftover" (or more precisely, what doesn't reach what you'd otherwise want or need be spending it on to add real value to your life).

Also many wage/ salary earners here put their night out on the credit card to lock-in the price and hope that when it comes time to pay it, hope like hell that their wages/ salaries will have increased with paritarias or that their bank increases their limit.

 

[earlyretirement]

That article is mostly BS. I've been coming down to BA since the big crash at the end of 2001. YES the economy is shitty. But then again, it's always been pretty shitty. I don't think long-term Argentina can ever get itself out of this mess.

Actually I'm really surprised because things before were always much more expensive than the USA but something really shocked me this trip the past few weeks. I went into the big New Balance store in Palermo Soho and I was shocked that many of the shoes are actually less than the USA. My son wanted some shoes and in the USA with sales tax it was about $120 US. Here they were $85 US at the blue rate.

My wife saw some Golden Goose shoes that are $550 US in the USA that she said she saw here for about $375 US. I've never before seen this before.

Restaurants are still all packed with tourists but also wealthy locals. You have to remember that many locals are very wealthy (no matter what is going on with the local economy). And with these wealthy locals that have their funds stored in US dollars, they have even more to spend.

Case in point, my HOA fees on a few apartments that I own are less today in US dollar terms than 15 years ago. Even with inflation.

Restaurants are MUCH cheaper than the USA now. Been dining out about 2 or 3 times a day with my family and prices are at least 3 times cheaper than the USA. Uber's while very convenient are more than taxis now but still generally less than 3,000 pesos to go from Recoleta to Palermo Soho with surge pricing. Taxis are about 1,700 pesos for the same ride.

I've found a lot fewer taxis vs. a few years ago. And some things are just super crazy cheap compared to the USA. My daughter had her nails done and in the USA it's almost $100 US and today I paid about $17 US (8,000 pesos).

My wife and I got a 1 hour couples massage which is about $250 US in the USA. Today we paid $21 US (10,000 pesos). So some things are just crazy cheap compared to the USA.

For an expat you can have a crazy good life here so that article is totally bogus.

FYI if you're in Palermo and want a good money exchange place there is one right in front of Plaza Serrano at Serrano 1563. It looks like it's a government regulated office. 480 pesos to $1US yesterday. Very convenient if you're staying in Palermo Soho.

 

[Lanick]

This article or whatever it is, is pure BS. Argentina got great standards of life. You get great food, great medical, great gym/sports, great social life at a fraction what it’d be in the US! Also; there’s no way to compare Argentina to Lebanon. That’s something like apples to light bulb. Punta is packed by Argentines. Pinamar, Carilo is packed with locals that you have to reserve tables well ahead. People from other SA countries migrating to AR to have a better life and opportunities. So are the people from many other parts of the world. No working professionals sleeping in their cars because they can’t afford the rent. They may complain a lot but they also enjoy themselves. I had a dermatologist consultation where I paid $5 including the medication. There are many great restaurants full of people. Argentina is a true democracy where you can experience the ultimate personal freedom! Massive resources that they can feed the world. To be frank; if I were the EU I’d invite Argentina to join the EU. AR would be a huge added asset to the EU with its natural and human resources! Also a round Of golf in the municipio is like $3 or so. ;-)

 

[Ronnie Hotdogs]

It's a good place to live if your earnings put you in the top say 1% which with a dollar income isn't difficult.

For the average Argentine it's surely a bit of a grind and getting worse every year.

 

[Lanick]

Top 1%! if one got an income equal to the income of top 1% of the Argentines then why would they live in Arg leaving their own countries? Top 1% of Argentines are all multi millionaires and some billionaires! A teacher in Argentina living a better life than a teacher in the US!

 

[Ronnie Hotdogs]

There are 460,000 multi millionaires in Argentina?

 

[TWB103]

There are 460,000 multi millionaires in Argentina?

I think he means peso multi-millionaires lol