Mexico and Argentina grapple with rising basic basket costs amid inflation shifts

In May 2026, Mexico's urban households needed 4,930 pesos to cover the basic food and services basket, a 0.5% monthly decline from April but still higher than a year earlier. The modest drop coincided with a slight moderation in inflation, which fell 0.2% month‑on‑month. However, staple items such as tomatoes saw prices surge 99% year‑on‑year, keeping overall living costs elevated.

In Argentina, the removal of state subsidies on utilities and transport under President Javier Milei has driven sharp increases in service bills. Between March 2023 and March 2026, the cost of electricity rose from $3,664 to $42,887 and gas from $1,380 to $28,025. Public‑transport fares in the Buenos Aires metropolitan area jumped from $52 to $700, a rise of over 3,000%. As a result, the share of household income spent on services surged from 1.3% to 5.8% of average salaries. "La reducción de subsidios nacionales implica, en el corto plazo, una compresión del ingreso disponible de las familias argentinas porque aumenta el peso de tarifas y servicios sobre el presupuesto mensual," said economist Damián Di Pace.