BigMac Index: Argentina more expensive than US

[palermo_couple]

Very entertaining article TODAY in "La Nacion"
and
a second one in the same newspaper


The British newspaper "The economist" is publishing the "Big Mac Index" annualy.

- Mc Donalds Hamburger in Buenos Aires 2% more expensive than in the US.
- 3 years before it was 46% cheaper
- Peso 2% overvalued. "Real" peso-dollar money exchange rate would be 3,08
- Cost of life in Argentina is more expensive than it is in the USA, Chile, Mexico, Uruguay, Peru, Costa Rica etc.
- Cost of life is cheaper than in Euro-Zone and Brazil

That's what the Big Mac Index and "La Nacion" are saying ...

 

[bigbadwolf]

- Mc Donalds Hamburger in Buenos Aires 2% more expensive than in the US.

But the quality of the meat McD uses in Europe and Argentina is superior to that used in the USA.

 

[ReemsterCARP]

McDonald's target crowd is different in the US.
In the US McD is a place where poor people eat. In Argentina it's for the middle classes. The price of a BigMac therefore not only depends on the costs, but also on the 'status' they want to give their food. I expect the profit margin on a us BigMac to be way less than on an Argentine BM.

 

[CABJ]

What price did they use for the big mac in Argentina?

 

[steveinbsas]

CABJ asked: "What price did they use for the big mac in Argentina?"

If you click on the link in the first post you can read the article and see for yourself. Even if you can't read Spanish very well, you'll still probably be able to figure it out.

 

[JG]

I think the hamburgers suck in argentina. quite awful and that goes for the mcdonalds here too. back in usa, the beef is much better. i can get good, thick hamburgers in many places. not hard to find at all and certainly not limited to one or two upscale neighborhoods as it is here.
Interesting index. I find many things here more expensive than back home in usa. a student of mine just got back from california. he raved about the hamburgers, the cheap clothes, how he bought 2 leather jackets, thick, for 50 bucks each......oh and his laptop with webcam for 500 dollars on sale.
he had a gleam in his eye recounting his trip. Life here in arg. is a grinding struggle and i guess he saw it doesnt have to be this way. Called my sister today in economically hurting usa, she was poolside preparing for a party. when she listed the banquet she was having, i felt i must be the poorest person she knows.
if you move here, most likely you will see your quality of life drop, unless you are a "democrat abroad" i guess and are cattle ranch owning gentry with a household of servants, then its just FABulous to live in argentina!

 

[bigbadwolf]

I think the hamburgers suck in argentina. quite awful and that goes for the mcdonalds here too. back in usa, the beef is much better. i can get good, thick hamburgers in many places. not hard to find at all and certainly not limited to one or two upscale neighborhoods as it is here.

JG, why do you keep badmouthing Argentina without real cause? It seems to come out reflexively. In general, the beef in the USA has more testosterone, more chemicals, and more antibiotics than any other country I know. There is more genetically engineered food sold to unwitting consumers in the USA than anywhere else I know. The FDA is weak, lax, and its officials willing to be co-opted by agribusiness. Every time I leave the US, I drop a pound of weight a day. I lost 30 pounds in as many days in Argentina. I lost 15 pounds in as many days in Panama. The food in these countries is just so much more nutritious and less addled than the food in the USA.
Just curious why you launch into these tirades and diatribes against Argentina at the drop of a hat.

 

[CABJ]

Extra burger from Burger King

 

[soulskier]

I think burgers aren't as good in Argentina because the aren't as juicy, they appear leaner. Flipside, the lomo is easily the best cut of meat in the world.
JG, if you believe moving to Argentina as an expat will result in a lower quality of life, why would you continue to do it?

 

[perry]

Some products are definetly dearer in Argenina and food is becoming expensive . I predict in three years that Buenos Aires will become a expensive city in the top 50 in the world.
I am hoping that the working classes receive the wages that will correspond to their hopes and aspirations . Lets see if the National Government improves their situation.