Cost of living in Chile up 2.9% in July, raising poverty line

The cost of the basic food basket in Chile registered a change of 2.9 percent in July compared to June and 20.6 percent in the last 12 months, leading to an increase in the poverty line in the country, the Chilean press reported today, Wednesday, citing data from the Ministry of Social Development and Family.

The Chilean portfolio said in its report that the monthly change was higher in the seventh month of the year than in June (0.5 percent).

The poverty line in the South American country showed a monthly fluctuation of 2 percent, higher than in June (0.7 percent).

The 12-month fluctuation in the poverty line was lower than that of the basic food basket during the same period, standing at 15 percent, an increase of 1.4 percentage points compared to the June 2021-June 2022 period (13.6 percent).

Last July, prices for 84 percent of the products in the basic food basket increased by an average of 2.9 percent, including bananas, carrots, hake, and frozen corn.

The basic food basket takes into account a threshold of 2,000 calories per day needed by an average person and is considered a benchmark for the cost of living in the South American country.

Chile recorded inflation of 1.4 percent in July, bringing the 12-month fluctuation to 13.1 percent, according to the National Statistics Institute (INE) last week.

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