The basic family basket of the Buenos Aires middle class has disappeared “to the clouds”. The fact is that to be considered middle class in terms of income, a typical family must have factored in February income over a million pesos ($1,017,520) without considering rent according to data from CABA’s Directorate of Statistics and Census If they rentthey should have a higher income $1,300,000 per month.
For this reason, the professional and salaried middle class is falling into poverty those who were already poor collapse into poverty. This social decline explains the growth of people and families living in conditions of extreme poverty, without income to purchase basic foods. The city of Buenos Aires, the one with the greatest resources, is no exception.
In February, The family poverty basket amounted to $684,115 In the city of Buenos Aires. And with the price and tariff increases implemented these days, the poverty line expected for March will be higher than the poverty line $770,000, not including rental value.
Official data indicate that, in February, to not be poor, a typical family (married couple and 2 children) had to have earned more than 684,115 dollars, 15.94% more than in January ($590,042).
For its part, due to the surge in food prices, especially bread, fruit and vegetables, the poverty threshold rose from $290,411 in December TO $350,564 in January Already $402,752 310.2% above the February 2023 value.
With these values, if a modest rent ($684,115) is added to the family poverty basket, a typical family (married couple and 2 minor children) would need more than 850,000 people to avoid being poor.
This is demonstrated by the data from the Department of Statistics and Censuses of Buenos Aires one year ago he had the poverty line of a typical family an increase of 310.19% ($402,752 vs. $98,186 in February 2023). and the line Poverty has become more expensive by 290.74% (went from $175,080 to $684,115.
In both cases this is a higher increase than the average interannual inflation which, in the CABA, was 264.5%. Therefore, inflation hit low-income families hardest.
The poverty line of $684,115 exceeds the national average compensation of formal wages, which in January was $555,269.16 according to RIPTE (Average Taxable Earnings of Stable Workers).
The main food increases in the CABA in February were: Bread and cereals (16.4%), Milk, dairy products and eggs (17.1%) and Meats and derivatives (7.9%).
SN
Source: Clarin
