Argentine university staff plan a 72-hour hit to demand higher wages from Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. The government is offering a increase of 3% for August and 2% for September, which the unions described as unacceptableData for the first half of 2024 show that Argentinawith the highest cumulative inflation worldwide of 80% and an annual inflation rate of 271.5%.
The private sector is also under pressure, as the country’s soybean workers’ unions are demanding wage increases from processing companies that are above the country’s inflation rate. Argentina produces one third of the world’s soy flour and exports much of it to China, which is an important source of Buenos Aires’ foreign exchange reserves. Last Tuesday, Argentine workers began a strike against their employers, the switch off Processing plants and caused loading delaysfor 36 ships.
These strikes are at the heart of the political debate about President Javier MileiPromises to improve Argentina’s ailing economy – with some rigor if necessary. The unions have held two general strikes, including one in May in which 400 flights cancelled and transport lines shut down as garbage collectors, teachers and health workers stopped working, andBanks, shops and government agencies closed for the day.
In a exclusive GZERO interview with the President of Eurasia Group Ian Bremmer Last week, Milei acknowledged that “life will get tougher for the average Argentine citizen,” but defended his radical approach to saving Argentina’s ailing economy. We’ll be watching to see if this latest wave of strikes causes him to change his mind.
