President Javier Milei saved Argentina from the despair of socialism. Poverty reached a two-decade high between January and June of 2024 at 52.9% when Milei was working diligently to undo decades of poor fiscal policies. New data suggests the number of citizens under the poverty line has fallen to 38.1%
Before taking office, around 57% of adults in the Argentina were unemployed. Bloated government programs were costing the nation $6 million daily. Argentina was forced to stop printing money back in 2022 after inflation surpassed 60% in July of that year, and their currency became utterly worthless. here were mass strikes since their money could not fund basic goods. Even if they could find employment, what incentive would the people have when the currency is worthless?
Images of Milei with a chainsaw went viral as he swore to begin rapidly cutting government waste and eliminating the ever-growing public sector. He removed price controls and devalued the currency by 54%. Transport and fuel subsidies were eliminated. It was noted that these measures would at first hurt PPP before the economy could begin to heal. Imagine inflation cooling in February at 276% — the situation was dire. The International Monetary Fund awarded Argentina a $44 billion credit program. The nation is beginning to stabilize very slowly, and it took decades of deteriorating economic conditions for someone to come in and clean house.
The situation worsened before healing could begin. Milei called his measures a form of “shock therapy” for Argentina’s economy. Milei agreed to devalue the nation’s peso from around 350 to 800 pesos per USD. He has eliminated quotas on imports and exports and removed the licensing that was difficult to obtain. There is a temporary rise in taxes for non-agricultural trade that brings it on par with industry standards. Transportation and energy subsidies have been eliminated.
Annual inflation hit 289% in April 2024 as the economy was adjusting to new policies. In a dramatic turn of events, inflation cooled to 2.4% in March 2024. Argentina posted its first surplus in over a decade last April at $589 million. Argentina then hit its first budget surplus in December 2024—the first budget surplus in 123 years. The unemployment rate as of Q4 2024 fell to 6.4%, and labor force participation rose to 48.8%.
Milei exclaimed: “The deficit was the root of all our evils — without it, there’s no debt, no emission, no inflation. Today, we have a sustained fiscal surplus, free of default, for the first time in 123 years. This historic achievement came from the greatest adjustment in history and reducing monetary emission to zero. A year ago, a degenerate printed 13% of GDP to win an election, fueling inflation. Today, monetary emission is a thing of the past.”
Argentina is a shining example of how a nation can survive the death grip of socialistic policies when drastic measures are taken. Yet, the West is keen on abandoning capitalism in favor of policies that historically fail and leave citizens in extreme poverty. Milei has continued to preach the success of his policies at every opportunity, warning the world that they are in serious danger if they attempt to adopt the very policies that nearly ruined Argentina.
