poverty in Argentina

[from Merco Press, 25 January 2011]

Three of Every Ten Argentines Are Poor

Three of every ten Argentines fall below the poverty line, 30.9% of the population, Ecolatina consultants said and they warned that “if prices continue to increase, it will be difficult for poor people’s income to beat inflation.”

“It is worrying that following a year of strong economic recovery and significant improvements in most areas of the economy, the reduction in poverty has been minimal, this is because of the increase in inflation, especially in food,” said the report.

According to the consultants, inflation in 2010 was 26.6% “the highest since the devaluation.”

Although most goods have increased, including public services, 60% of the rise in inflation is due to the surge in food prices.

According to calculations the minimum requirements for a family of four, which measures the line of poverty, increased 31.8%. The highest increases were at the beginning of 2010, because meat went up considerably then.