Food prices fell by 0.03% in Greater Buenos Aires in August

In an economic context marked by attention to the cost of living, food prices in popular neighborhoods of Greater Buenos Aires recorded a slight deflation during August.

According to the survey conducted by the Institute of Social, Economic and Citizen Policy Research (ISEPCI), the indicator showed a negative variation of 0.03%, reflecting a stabilization trend.

The main explanation for this behavior is found in the butcher shop sector, which recorded a significant drop of 6.94% during the month.

This decrease made it possible to offset variations in other segments of the basket and was key to containing the overall index. Produce products also followed this downward trend, with a monthly reduction of 4.68%. In year-on-year terms, fruit and vegetable prices decreased by 0.46%.

According to the report, a family composed of two adults and two minors needed in August $514,423 to cover the 57 products of the Basic Food Basket (CBA). In the year-on-year comparison, this set of goods recorded an increase of 24.84%. Meanwhile, the Total Basic Basket (CBT), which measures the minimum income to not be considered poor, stood at $1,172,884.44 for the same family group.

The survey was conducted on 850 local stores distributed across 20 districts of Greater Buenos Aires, which provides broad and representative coverage of consumption in popular sectors.

From ISEPCI they emphasized that "the growing fragmentation among sectors of society, which produces different behaviors also in consumption, can influence the evolution of prices in different ways".

The stabilization of food in August appears as a positive sign, considering that this is the sector with the greatest impact on household budgets, especially for those with tighter incomes.

In this context, attention is now focused on the official inflation data to be released by the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INDEC) next Wednesday, September 10 at 4:00 p.m.

According to private estimates, the variation of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for August would be between 1.8% and 2.0%, in line with a process of greater stability reflected in the recent evolution of food prices.

In July, this segment had recorded an increase of 1.9%, accumulating a year-on-year increase of 30.6%.