A few days before the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INDEC) released its official inflation index for October, a private survey of supermarket price changes yielded data showing clear regional dispersion. Patagonia solidified its position as the region with the highest monthly increase in food and beverages, far outpacing northern states.
The report was conducted by Consulting company Analytica has determined through the measurement of “Changit Federation”, They compared price changes for a basket representative of the consumption of a typical middle-class household in different jurisdictions of the country. This result shows not only the difference in the rate of increase, but also the correlation between price increases and wage increases.
The disparity in price increases reflects differences in the logistics cost structure and income levels that drive demand in each region, and highlights the complexity of anti-inflation policies in countries with significant geographic and economic asymmetries.
Inflation in Argentina: Patagonia leads price rises
According to research by Analytica, each state of Patagonia is The price of the supermarket shopping cart increases significantly from month to month.
Tierra del Fuego was at the forefront of the increase, but Monthly change is +5.3%. they closely followed Chubut +4.3% increase; Rio Negro (+3.8%), Neuquen (+3.7%), Santa Cruz (+3.7%).
In contrast, the following states: The slowest increases were concentrated in the north and coast. mission recorded a slight increase of +1.1%, followed by formosa (+1.4%) and jujuy province (+1.7%). The difference between the region with the highest inflation rate (Tierra del Fuego) and the region with the lowest (Misiones state) was 4.2 percentage points in October alone.
In absolute terms, the biggest peso gains were concentrated in the south, with Tierra del Fuego seeing a cumulative increase of $45,544, followed by La Pampa (+$42,392) and Chubut (+$39,373).
Where does it cost you the most money to pack your bag?
The consultants measured the total cost of the food and beverage basket, as well as month-to-month variations, and found clear regional trends. That means the most expensive baskets in the country are concentrated in Patagonia.
The highest monthly cost was In Santa Cruz, the basket amount is $834,177. This is followed by Chubut ($829,597) and Tierra del Fuego ($822,066).
At the other end of the spectrum is the consolidation of NEA provinces as the most economical region to fill Changit, albeit with a relatively large impact on residents’ pockets. Misiones ($748,815), Formosa ($749,929) and Chaco ($755,224) had the lowest values.
Analytica says prices vary widely in the South and that the high prices are due to a combination of factors. Despite high logistics costs, Patagonia’s provinces have some of the highest private sector salaries in the country, led by Neuquén and Santa Cruz, which are driven by energy, mining and fishing. In this region, The cost of the basket equates to an average of 15.7% of the monthly income of two registered salaried employees.
In NEA, the situation is reversed. Despite having the cheapest basket. Lower labor incomes mean that the same basket costs 29.5% of the two average salaries. It is almost twice as large as in the southern part of the country.
Most increased products
Within the surveyed basket, two major mass-consumer items experienced significant overall increases in October.
- Sunflower oil: This product was again one of the drivers of price increases, increasing by 4% to 6% in all jurisdictions. Peaks were recorded in San Luis (+6.6%), Entre Ríos (+6.4%) and the City of Buenos Aires (CABA) (+6.3%).
- Dairy products: There was also an increase almost nationwide. Cream cheese rose 2% to 4%, and Santa Cruz (+5.2%) rose even more. Drinking yogurt increased by a similar range, but slightly more in the north.
- egg: It showed a stable behavior with little variation, except for Tucuman and Santiago del Estero, where an increase of about 1% was recorded.
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