Milei Talks Income and Inflation in Neuquen: Says 'Not Making It to the End of the Month' Is a Misreading, with Energy Exports as Economic Backing
On October 26, Argentine President Javier Milei, attending an event related to the oil and gas industry in Neuquen, spoke on the income issue that people feel most strongly about. He rebutted the claim that 'ordinary people can't make it to the end of the month', arguing that such a characterization exaggerates reality, and said that if a person truly had no money at all, it would be impossible to last ten days without food and water. The remark became a focus of Argentine public opinion that day. Milei also stressed that the government's reform of economic rules is advancing, and that Argentina entered the election period 'in a state of peace', with no currency run. The other side presented by official data and private surveys is that many households' income growth still lags behind inflation, and residents increasingly rely on borrowing to maintain spending - precisely the basis on which opponents question his claim that 'stabilization is working'. Notably, the timing of Milei's trip was no coincidence: Argentina's energy exports in one month this year exceeded US$10 billion for the first time, with the Vaca Muerta shale oil and gas field in Neuquen Province the largest contributor. Stronger export income helps improve the external balance, ease foreign exchange reserve pressures and provide support for the peso. For investors, the key question is whether the disinflation momentum can withstand the political backlash from the decline in residents' real purchasing power, especially in areas related to consumption, banking and the peso. Whether Milei's characterization of 'not making it to the end of the month' as a misreading can persuade voters will depend on the actual course of wages and prices in the coming months.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 阿根廷内乌肯市景（资料图）。摄影：miroab，CC BY-SA 2.0，取自 Wikimedia Commons。Photo: Neuquén, Argentina (file photo). Credit: miroab, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
