Overview
- Argentina’s main industry group, the UIA, said Wednesday that its February gauge fell about 3% from a year earlier and 0.8% from January on a seasonally adjusted basis, with output still roughly 10% below 2022–2023 levels.
- Losses were sharp in key lines of manufacturing, including autos down 25.7% year over year, textiles down 23.9%, garments and footwear down 20.6%, and machinery and equipment down 20.2%, while chemicals, non‑metallic minerals, and oil refining posted modest gains.
- Sales to Brazil, a core export market for factory goods, slipped 2.6% in February, driven by a 3% drop in the number of cars shipped.
- Recent official energy data reinforce the slowdown as INDEC reported an 8.1% slide in industrial natural gas use in the last four months of 2025 and capacity use at 53.8% in December, signaling high idle plant time.
- Economic Minister Luis Caputo voiced concern about the slow pace of recovery, and industry leaders blame thin household buying power and tougher import competition for delaying a broader rebound.