The utility-rate adjustment carried out by Javier Milei’s government has sharply cut the purchasing power of lower-income households, holding back the recovery in domestic consumption — and, with it, in economic activity.

Utilities are a category that has risen well above average inflation since Milei took office.

The Interdisciplinary Institute of Political Economy (IIEP) estimated that between December 2023 — the month Milei took office — and June 2026, water rates rose 555%, electricity 494%, transport 1,354% and natural gas 2,073%.

By comparison, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) over the same period was 312.7%.

That above-inflation increase has held up over the past year.

The think tank Fundación Capital noted that while the CPI rose 33% over the past 12 months, in the Buenos Aires metropolitan area (AMBA), electricity and gas rates climbed an average of 55% year-on-year, and public transport 49%.

The report concluded that the average spending on utilities in June represented 10.8%........

© Buenos Aires Herald