Pocket vote: Young people were the group that lost the most purchasing power since 2023.

The changes in relative prices since December 2023 have affected different age groups unevenly. According to the consulting firm Analytica, the impact on income purchasing power and access to goods and services was different for young people, adults, and older adults.

Based on data from the Permanent Household Survey (EPH), the study shows that young adults were the hardest hit. In Buenos Aires, their real income fell 9.3% year-over-year, while that of adults increased 5.4% and that of seniors 12.4%.

The 23- to 27-year-old segment experienced a sharp decline in spending power . Increases in food, tariffs, and services reduced disposable income, and the weight of services in the budget grew 10 percentage points compared to 2023.

The report indicates that accessibility to food and cultural activities, such as movies and gyms, was the most affected. However, there was a slight improvement in the purchase of durable goods: with the same income, a young person can buy a pair of jeans or access a cell phone 15.9% more easily than a year ago.

Among the 43- to 47-year-old group, the improvement in real income led to a moderate recovery . Despite the rising cost of services, this segment managed to expand its purchasing power for food, clothing, and durable goods.

According to the study, adults needed 29 monthly incomes to buy a car—five fewer than in 2023—and just one for a refrigerator. The child-rearing basket for a child between 6 and 12 years old became 31.1% more affordable. The share of utilities in income, excluding rent, fell to 18.9%, although it remains 4.3 percentage points above the level prior to the 2023 elections.

Older adults (aged 63 to 67) were the group with the best relative performance. After a sharply losing year in 2024, the slowdown in inflation allowed for some recovery . Basic products, such as milk (+14.4%) and noodles (+17%), showed improved affordability, while coffee (-16.7%) and dulce de leche (-0.3%) declined.

Furthermore, retirees needed one less income to buy a refrigerator and ten less to buy a car, compared to 2023. The share of services in total income, which had increased by almost 15 points, moderated to 5 points above the previous level.

“ The hardest hit segment was young adults, where, paradoxically, a significant portion of the ruling party electorate is concentrated ,” Analytica warns. “In this group, incomes failed to recover the accessibility of goods and services they had in 2023.”

The report also points out that the improvement among adults and seniors is explained by the slowdown in inflation, although it was accompanied by increased debt and a reduction in disposable income due to the rising cost of basic services.

Along the same lines, the consulting firm Equilibra highlighted that during the first 20 months of Javier Milei 's administration, registered employees and retirees lost, on average, the equivalent of 2.1 months of income, reflecting the prolonged impact of the recession on purchasing power.