Inflation in Argentina is at its highest level since 1991.
When you speak with college students, young adults and even kids,
they've never seen inflation this bad before in their lives.
Oriana Gago and her husband, Samir Santa Cruz,
live with their daughter and three other family members
in a 700-square-foot apartment
near one of Buenos Aires’ poorest neighborhoods.
Gago and Santa Cruz
represent a growing number of working class families in Argentina
who are struggling to make ends meet.
The couple's combined income
includes Samir's salary working at a furniture shop
and the state assistance Oriana receives for unemployed mothers.
Still, they fall below the poverty line,
With dwindling buying power and no savings
Oriana and Samir say they often skip meals,
instead drinking yerba mate,
a highly caffeinated beverage, to stave off their hunger.
A few miles away in the middle class town of Caseros,
33-year-old Leandro Vera runs a restaurant opened by his parents
more than 20 years ago.
Because of inflation, he's finding it hard to budget
and keep things running smoothly.
Vera has responded by taking certain products off of his menu
and using different strategies to lock in prices from his suppliers.
Argentina didn't get here overnight.
Inflation has been a problem for decades.
There's no one reason for all this.
But a major problem is that Argentina's government
spends more money than it has.
This creates deficits
and to pay for deficits, governments in Argentina
have either printed too much money or taken out too much debt.
Different strategies, same result.
The country ends up in a currency crisis time and time again.
In 2001, Argentina hit creditors with the biggest default in history,
halting payments on $95 billion.
Since then, the country has gone through several recessions
two more debt defaults
and years of currency devaluations.
Recent global shocks have exacerbated
Argentina’s structural problems.
Argentina has a presidential election this year
and the deteriorating economic situation
could fuel a political shift.
Oriana and Samir were both raised by parents loyal to Peronism,
a ruling political movement
that's dominated Argentina politics for decades.
But this year, the couple says they plan to vote
for a different kind of politician.
Javier Milei, a libertarian economist
and outsider presidential candidate, is gaining traction
by tapping into voter anger at spiraling prices.
His most ambitious proposal is to dollarize the Argentine economy
as a way to tackle inflation.
Milei is also appealing to some voters
because he's not from the traditional political blocs in Argentina
and people see dramatic changes necessary
to fix Argentina's deep problems.
Still, the October election remains wide open,
with at least three other presidential candidates polling competitively.
There's also a significant percentage of voters,
like Vera, who remain undecided.
Some believe the next government will have no choice
but to implement drastic measures
to put the economy back on track.
One crucial influence on policy
will come from the conditions attached
to a $44 billion loan
from the International Monetary Fund in Washington.
The deal requires the country to cut public spending
and implement currency measures.