The National Institute of Statistics and Censuses of Argentina (INDEC) is scheduled to present today at 4 PM the consumer price index (CPI) for February, a piece of data of great relevance for the national government, which has made curbing inflation one of its main objectives. After recording an increase of 2.2% in the first month of 2025, the government expects the downward trend to continue, and there are even forecasts suggesting that the figure could be below 2%.
It is predicted that last month's inflation will reach 2.3%, according to data from the Economic Studies Center of Orlando Ferreres & Associates, which highlights the impact of the significant increase in the price of meat. Other consultancies have also offered their estimates: the Libertad y Progreso Foundation predicts 2.3%, Analytica 2.4%, Equilibra 2.5%, and EcoGo 2.7%.
According to the Equilibra report, in February the monthly inflation reached 2.5%, which would represent an increase of 0.3 percentage points compared to January. The sectors that increased the most were housing, water, electricity, and other fuels (4.3%); restaurants and hotels (4.2%); and alcoholic beverages and tobacco (3.2%).
On the other hand, economist María Castiglioni from C&T Economic Advisors projects that the CPI will be at 1.9%, a figure not seen since July 2020. Meanwhile, Daniel Artana, chief economist of FIEL, expects an increase compared to the previous month but does not consider it a cause for concern. Artana suggests that it is important to observe the long-term trend, beyond monthly fluctuations.
For Santiago Bulat, inflation could be closer to 3% than to 2%, a rebound that he considers healthy and as part of the economy's process toward stability. Overall, analysts expect prices to follow a downward trend, although with some temporary rebounds, such as the one that could be seen in February.
