Argentina’s poverty rises to 32 percent under Milei with more pain forecast

Estimates by the UCA suggest the poverty rate could reach 35 percent this year, reversing a sharp decline in 2025.Argentina’s poverty rate has risen, hitting 32.3 percent in the first half of 2026 under President Javier Milei, partly erasing the country’s earlier gains.According to figures released by the national statistics agency INDEC on Thursday, the poverty rate rose 4.1 percentage points between January and June compared with the last half of 2025, moving from 28.2 to 32.3 percent.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Is Trump making Latin America great again?list 2 of 3Argentina grain exports halt as maritime pilots strike over Milei decreelist 3 of 3Argentina’s Left stages ‘March of Anger’ over Milei’s austerity measuresend of listExtreme poverty — where households cannot afford basic food needs — also rose from 6.3 to 7.5 percent.More Argentinians found themselves out of work in the second quarter after unemployment rose to 7.9 percent, the country’s highest level since 2021. For many who remain employed, their wages have struggled to keep up with the rising cost of basic goods and services.Household income per person rose 11.5 percent in the first six months of the year, but the cost of necessities used to calculate the poverty line rose nearly 20 percent, according to INDEC.The economic pain is expected to worsen.Estimates from the Argentina" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="209295" data-entity-type="organization">Catholic University of Argentina (UCA), widely seen as an early indicator of official poverty trends, suggest the poverty rate could rise to 35 percent by the end of the year.Argentinian President Javier Milei gestures as he speaks during a ceremony commemorating the 172nd anniversary of the Buenos Aires Stock Exchange in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on July 16, 2026 [Mariana Nedelcu/Reuters]The news comes after Milei, elected in 2023, repeatedly touted declining poverty as evidence that his free-market economic overhaul was bearing fruit.