Argentina's inflation slows to 8-month low in a boost for President Milei

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Argentina's inflation slowed for the second straight month in May, economic data released Thursday showed, providing some welcome news for President Javier Milei after almost a year of stubbornly persistent price increases that threatened to undermine the libertarian leader's signature achievement.

Consumer prices rose 2.1% last month compared with April, the government statistics agency INDEC reported — a rate hailed by Economy Minister Luis Caputo as the lowest monthly level in eight months.

But annual inflation rose marginally to 33.2% this May because monthly inflation in May 2025 hit a seven-year low of 1.5%. Since then, prices have climbed and stayed high, squeezing households and fueling public frustration with Milei's government as it grapples with a series of corruption scandals and struggles to respond to a slump in economic activity across the labor-intensive sectors of retail and manufacturing.

Last month, communications networks saw the biggest price increases with 3.4% on higher phone and internet bills, followed by education costs. Food prices accelerated by 2.5%.

Milei praised Minister Caputo, nicknamed Toto, on social media, posting the INDEC report with the comment, "Let’s goooooo Toto!”

Milei and Caputo also celebrated the news that S&P Global, one of the major credit ratings agencies, had upgraded Argentina's sovereign credit rating late Wednesday to a stable B- from the CCC category, which is considered most at risk of defaulting, citing the government’s success in meeting debt repayments.

Although the upgrade leaves Argentina several notches below investment status, the vote of confidence advances Milei's goal of bringing the crisis-prone economy back to global capital markets six years after Argentina defaulted on its foreign debt for the ninth time.

Milei came to office in late 2023 vowing to eliminate Argentina's sky-high price increases and reverse its chronic fiscal deficits.

More than two years later, his sweeping deregulation and austerity measures have produced a rare budget surplus, charmed investors and slowed inflation — the annual rate, now at 33%, topped 200% when he took power.

But the inflation that makes the cost of living here in Buenos Aires comparable to that in European capitals outpaces real wages. Unemployment has ticked up as thousands of workers are laid off from national industries that can't keep up with a flood of cheap imports.

Corruption scandals of the kind Milei vowed to eradicate upon taking office have struck a nerve against the backdrop of his efforts to defund education, health care and social assistance.

Most recently, Milei's close aide and cabinet chief, Manuel Adorni, came under investigation for alleged illicit enrichment over lavish travel — including an all-cash trip to Aruba — and real estate purchases despite his meager public salary. On Wednesday, he admitted to hiding $500,000 in undeclared savings and cryptocurrency investments.

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FILE - Argentine President Javier Milei arrives at the Cathedral for a Te Deum to celebrate the anniversary of the May Revolution, which marked the beginning of the country's independence from Spain, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko, File)

TRACY, Calif. (AP) — A fire destroyed a medical equipment warehouse in Northern California and sent thick black smoke pouring into the sky Thursday and prompted evacuations of other nearby facilities as authorities fought to get the blaze under control.

The fire ignited at the large distribution center for Medline, a major medical-surgical products provider, in Tracy, a city about 55 miles (88.5 kilometers) east of San Francisco. It spread across the street into a FedEx facility, where crews were able to stop it, according to Fire Chief Randall Bradley, of the South San Joaquin County Fire Authority.

Officials evacuated a large portion of the area as the wind heightened the risk of spreading embers, said Sgt. Michael Richards, from the city's police department. The 1 million-square-foot (93,000-square-meter) warehouse is in a massive industrial park that also houses fulfillment and distribution centers for Amazon, Home Depot and FedEx.

Medline said all of its employees and other personnel at the site were accounted for.

“We are coordinating closely with local authorities and first responders as we assess the fire’s impact and will share more details as they become available,” a spokesperson for the company said in a statement.

Tracy Mayor Dan Arriola said the fire is burning in the largest industrial zone in the city and far away from homes.

“I understand that the fire has fully engulfed Medline and they are working to make sure that it’s contained to that particular facility,” he said. FedEx and Amazon distribution centers have been evacuated, he said.

Medline is a supplier of latex gloves, masks, surgical instruments and other medical supplies that Arriola said was key in distributing medical supplies needed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Officials are evaluating air quality and possible impacts to residents of the area, he said. Officials are investigating what started the fire.

A sprinkler system that appeared to be broken and low water pressure in hydrants at the facility hindered the firefight, Bradley said. The issues appeared to be with the warehouse's, not the city's, water system. Authorities don't yet know what went wrong, he said.

“Things worked against us," he said, citing water supply issues, low humidity, high winds and high temperatures. "It was a little bit of a perfect storm for this fire evolving quickly.”

No homes have been evacuated.

Thursday’s high temperature for Tracy was expected to reach 99 degrees Fahrenheit (37 degrees Celsius), with no rain in the forecast.

This image from aerial video shows black smoke pouring into the sky from a fire at a medical equipment warehouse in Tracy, Calif., Thursday, June 11, 2026. (KGO via AP)