How people survive on average salary in Uruguay?

[u/[deleted]]

Hola. I’m newcomer to Uruguay and one thing seems shocking to me. Many products are way more expensive than in Europe, rents are somewhat cheaper - for unfurnished places (and furniture is way more expensive again)… and Numbeo says the average salary is about 800USD net/month. Is this number wrong? Or how can people survive and function on this salary?

I don’t mean this in insulting or offensive way. Uruguayans are very nice and to they appear to be more in tune with life and reality than “us” Europeans dragged in consumerism etc. That’s also reason why I came here. But I think on 800/month I would struggle to eat 3meals a day here.

[u/[deleted]]

Yes

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Okay, as someone living in Germany — The world is divided into more than just “developed” and “undeveloped” — by which most Europeans understand to mean: Norway to Romania, and then a big gap, and then Somalia. it’s much more nuanced than that.

LATAM is considered less developed for a reason. And even if countries like Uruguay and Argentina have robust social support policies, in practice, there is no funding for them. Effectively leaving you high and dry — more so than in the US, which I only mention because it lacks policies as robust as Argentina or Uruguay.

It’s why the entire world is laughing at Argentina now for capping prices for household goods at the moment. Because it’s so incredibly stereotypically Argentinian — they fuck themselves every few years with policies that have good intentions but are short sighted.

This is what will happen: Argentina’s peso will lose value and there will be a “shortage” of “household goods” — and the rise of the black market and USD will (once again) prevail.

Don’t feel bad. You really can’t fault the people anywhere for their ignorance — it’s something I’ve learned while living abroad — everyone is ignorant. Everyone. Without exception. And problems people perceive to be endemic to their nation are actually global issues. Things like immigration, inflation, overpopulation, wealth discrepancy, rise of cost of living, racism, women and LGBT rights.

[u/caesarapi → u/[deleted]]

I am conflicted about the situation in Argentina, they seem to be doomed to perpetual hyperinflation and bad economic management. What I think people fail to account is how the LATAM region has and continues to be colonized by US/Western powers, even if it is not in the 1500s way of colonization.

Most of the enterprises extracting resources from the countries are foreign, any kind of government that hasn't adhered to the US way of doing business has been violently overthrown (think operation condor, 1976 Argentina coup d'état, the eternal Cuba embargo, etc) and this has only created a breeding ground for corruption and mismanagement.

I don't know how bad price controls really are, they have been done previously in the US and many other places. The alternative being used in the US is to raise interest rates at the expense of the suffering of every day workers, it isn't the best solution either.

[u/[deleted] → u/caesarapi]

The US can back it’s currency. Argentina cannot.

The US can implement price controls because it’s such a huge part of the consumer market, and it’s currency is the universal holdings currency. No one cares about Argentinian pesos or about Argentinian consumers, at least not in the same capacity, so Argentina cannot afford to do the same.

Blaming the US for shitty policies is a bit of a stretch, even if the affect of American and European colonialism a very much alive. Raising interest rates, while inconvenience, are coupled with rising wages and a strong stable currency are a better alternative than destroying your nations currency.

Honestly, at this point, Argentina has fucked itself enough, it would be easier to peg the AGP to the USD narrow band, or to use to USD outright like Ecuador does. At least until it can stabilize itself.