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Basic basket is 38% of the minimum wage in Brazil, 7% in Ireland and 160% in Nigeria

Those who live on a minimum wage in Brazil have more difficulty buying the basics than in at least 51 other countries.

According to a survey carried out by the Picodi platform, the cost of the most essential items in a basic food basket in Brazil currently consumes 37.8% of the country’s minimum wage, a value of R$ 1,219 in January, considered the net value of the payment, after tax rebates.

This puts the purchasing power of the Brazilian wage floor in the 52nd position, in a list with 67 countries.

The ranking is mainly led by developed countries, such as Great Britain and Ireland, which have the best rates and where the same basic food basket, in local values, costs 6.5% and 7.4% of the current minimum wage.

At the other end, among the worst minimum wages in the world, are Uzbekistan, where the basket considered basically costs the entire minimum wage in the country (97.3%) and Nigeria, where the minimum wage is enough for all food – the value of the basket is equivalent to 160.4% of the minimum salary.

Worst in Latin America

Brazil has the worst performance among all Latin American countries listed. In Puerto Rico, for example, the best in the region, paying for the same basic basket, at local prices, costs 12.8% of the current minimum wage.

In Peru, the closest to Brazil, those who live on the country’s minimum wage lose a slice of 35.7% of their income to buy a food basket.

On the other hand, in other emerging countries with a similar profile, such as Russia (45.5%), Indonesia (50.8%), Thailand (54.3%) and India (59.4%), those who earn the lowest wages lives worse than in Brazil.

Cost of the basic food basket on the minimum wage in Latin America:

  1. Puerto Rico (12.8%)
  2. Ecuador (21.7%)
  3. Paraguay (21.7%)
  4. Argentina (21.7%)
  5. Colombia (24.5%)
  6. Bolivia (26.6%)
  7. Chile (28.1%)
  8. Guatemala (30.4%)
  9. Uruguay (33%)
  10. Mexico (34.4%)
  11. Peru (35.7%)
  12. Brazil (37.8%)

To arrive at the values, Picodi considered the net minimum wage practiced in each country in January 2023, as well as how much it costs to buy the most basic items in each of them, estimated on the numbeo.com website, supplied by consumers from all over the world.

The basic basket assembled consists of bread, milk, eggs, rice, cheese, meat, fruits and vegetables. In Brazil, the estimated amounts recommended for nutrition for an adult amounted to R$460.77, 12.5% ​​more than last year.

Price of the basic food basket in Brazil

  • Milk (10 liters) – BRL 52.20
  • Bread (10 units, 500 g each) – R$71.10
  • Rice (1.5 kg) – R$8.69
  • Eggs (20 units) – R$16.15
  • Cheese (1 kg) – R$42.84
  • Poultry and beef (6 kg) – R$186.72
  • Fruits (6 kg) – BRL 36.42
  • Vegetables (8 kg) – BRL 46.65

The biggest increases

The survey also verified the evolution of the minimum wage in each country in 2022, in light of the advance of global inflation and its impacts on the income of the poorest.

Net salaries were also considered for this, since taxes vary greatly from one economy to another and the amount received after deductions provides a better basis for comparison of how much each worker receives for themselves.

Argentina and Turkey, where annual inflation is over 80%, lead the list, with an increase of 104.5% and 100% in the national floor, respectively.

In Brazil, this readjustment was 8.9%, according to the parameters used by the platform.

Source: CNN Brasil

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