Pricey tortillas: LatAm’s poor struggle to afford staples

By FABIOLA SÁNCHEZ, MAURICIO SAVARESE and DANIEL POLITI
Associated Press

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Across Latin America, the sharpest price spike in a generation has left many widely consumed local products suddenly hard to attain. Countries had already been absorbing higher prices because of supply chain bottlenecks related to COVID-19 and government stimulus programs. Then Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sent fertilizer prices sharply higher, affecting agricultural products including corn. Global fuel prices jumped, too, making items transported by truck from the countryside costlier. In Chile, annual inflation was 10.5% in April, the first time in 28 years the index has hit double digits. Colombia’s rate reached 9.2%, its highest in more than two decades. In Argentina, whose consumers have long coped with double-digit inflation, price increases reach 58%.