Consumer prices in Argentina increased 2.7 percent in August, the INDEC national statistics bureau announced Wednesday.
The bureau, headed by Marco Lavagna, said that inflation has clocked in at 18.9 percent since the turn of the year. Prices have risen by 40.7 percent since August 2019, it added in a report.
The data indicates that inflation is on the rise – prices rose by 1.9 percent in July.
Despite the efforts of the government, which has placed restrictions on the prices of goods in the basic food basket, food and beverages grew the most in August, rising 3.5 percent. Home equipment and maintenance also rose by the same amount.
INDEC also said that wholesale prices had risen by 4.1 percent in August, accumulating increases of 14.7 percent this year so far.
In its budget proposal, sent to Congress late Tuesday night, the government forecast that inflation in 2021 will reach 29 percent. This year, the rate is expected to reach 40, according to the most recent survey of economists by the Central bank.
Argentina continues to remain mostly under lockdown, with restrictions on movement and commercial activity in most areas of the country, in a bid to tackle the spread of the novel coronavirus. As of Wednesday, the country had recorded 577,325 cases of Covid-19 and 11,910 deaths.
– TIMES/AFP
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