Inflation

[syngirl]

Well just this mornng on C5N they were saying that Argentines will have to accept the reality of a 4:1 usd in the coming months.

Out of curiosity, does anyone know what the exchange rate and rate of inflation peaked at before the economy crashed last time round?

 

[Ashley]

Well just this mornng on C5N they were saying that Argentines will have to accept the reality of a 4:1 usd in the coming months.

Out of curiosity, does anyone know what the exchange rate and rate of inflation peaked at before the economy crashed last time round?

I have no idea what the official figures were like but in the six months before the economy crashed end of 2001, I didn't noticed any inflation. The exchange rate was 1:1 until mid-December when it dropped suddenly and fairly massively for several months - I remember I was getting around 7 pesos to the British pound in 2002 and prices generally remained at their pre-devaluation levels - maybe there was some initial inflation to help balance things out...but my costs here went from the same as they were in London, to less than half that within days.
As far as I've noticed, inflation has slowly crept up from 2004/2005 onwards with costs hitting pre-devaluation levels 1/2 years ago and surpassing them over the past 6 months.
(this is what I've noticed - and is not backed up with any official data whatsoever)

 

[ReemsterCARP]

Ofcourse, we should not forget that a 1 to 1 was unsustainable and one of the most important reasons for the economy to crash. 1 to 1 was to good to be true.

 

[marksoc]

And remember that the 1 to 1 was maintained by cheaply selling all the state-owned companies, taking debt, and generally destroying the economy (no wonder that there was no inflation!). I remember too well the 25%> unemployment rate. I prefer 2010, and a lot of people that now eats food every day too. You will be surprised in 2011.

 

[dennisr]

BUENOS AIRES (Dow Jones)--Argentines' expectations for future inflation surged in April from the previous month, according to a closely watched survey of consumers.

Torcuato Di Tella University said Wednesday that the median projection for inflation over the next 12 months was 30% in April. That ties the survey's two-year-old historic and is up from 25% a month ago.

"The strong growth in the public's inflation expectations this year confirms the aggravation of the inflation dynamic," said Guido Sandleris, director of financial investigations at the university.

The 20.6 percentage point gap between what people expect inflation to be and what economists think the government will say it is has risen to a new high, said Sandleris.

"The magnitude of this gap continues to highlight the scarce credibility of the government's official data," Sandleris said.

The national statistics institute, Indec, reported a 1.2% month-on-month increase for its February consumer price index and a 8.2% gain on the year.

However, economists say real monthly inflation was likely closer to 3% while the annualized inflation was 16%.

Most private sector economists expect inflation to total at least two or three times the official Indec rate.

The average expectation for inflation rose to 32.4% from 31.8% the previous month, Di Tella reported.

On average, Argentines with a high school education or less expect inflation to total 35.8% over the next year while those with a college degree expect it to total 30.6%.

In general, lower income Argentines expect inflation to be higher than do upper-income Argentines. But that gap is decreasing, as higher-income earners' expectations rise.

The national statistics agency, or Indec, will report official inflation data Wednesday at 1900 GMT.

 

[Katser]

I was in BsAs in February and March and while things were more expensive than two years ago, food&booze was still around 30% to 40% cheaper than Vancouver. Leather and imported goods were expensive. Real estate went up, but it is still "cheap" when compared to Vancouver, where the average price for a house reached 1 million dollars this March (You can see some million dollar beauties here: http://www.crackshackormansion.com/).
On the other hand, if I had to live on an Argentine salary, I would be packing right now.

Do you mean out in resturants or in the supermarket?

Eating out is still much cheaper but rising but in the supermarket it is getting way more expensive.

Sometimes it's actually cheaper to buy something in a resturant/local cafe than cook it yourself in my opnion especially if your only buying for one or two people.

 

[SaraSara]

I agree with everyone that the inflation has gone thru the roof in the last year. Were many of you around to remember when the peso was .. If you think things are expensive now, it was not even logical to visit then.. I remember when it took U$S 80-100 to fill up the truck with gasoline and a dinner out for 2 was on the upwards scale of $75.. If any of you guys are still around in a couple years, I would like to hear what you thought about these times we are going thru now..

I pay U$S 50 to fill up the tank of my car - not a truck, and not with the most expensive gas. A lunch for two with no wine in an average Belgrano restaurant was fifty dollars last week.

Dollar-wise, prices are back to "uno a uno" levels.

 

[mcaffa]

Dollar-wise, prices are back to "uno a uno" levels.

Sad but oh so true.

 

[crakenflux]

Well you're doing it wrong. I'm not saying you didn't go to a hole in the wall place, but that seems pricy. The hole in the wall empanadaria that I ordered from today was $2/each and L of beer for 10. Thats 30% cheaper than the place you ate at. The name is pizza boy, i'll throw up the number and address tomorrow if anyone wants, delivery sin cargo and good inexpensive food.[/quote]

 

[Maikito]

Rent plays a big part in this. Luckily our rent is $1000 pesos monthly for a 2 rooms, 1 bath, kitchen, living room and HUGE balcony were we can host parties for 30 people, in Lourdes, Santos Luares, very very close to Capital and one of the best electric metro trains (Linea Urquiza). But, overall yes, I feel the inflation soaring incredibly and even more so after just arrving back from Puerto Rico and Florida. We try to save out money for entertainment and groceries. Entertainment being the Abasto movie theater using always 2x1 offers and, visiting friends or having friends over.