Anxiety and resignation in Argentina after Milei's economic shock measures

abcnews.go.com:

Argentines are facing uncertainty and concerns after President Javier Milei’s government announced economic shock measures aimed at tackling the country severe crisis

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Julia González wonders how she will afford the three bus rides and train trip to her job in downtown Buenos Aires. Lucía Pergolesi regrets her best friend has been fired from her job in a government ministry. Hilario Laffite admits he will have to increase prices in the shop where he works.

These are some of the faces of anxiety that Argentines are dealing with after President Javier Milei’s administration announced economic shock measures aimed at tackling the country severe crisis, including a sharp devaluation of the peso by 50%, cuts to subsidies and the closure of some ministries.

Milei himself has warned people that these steps will cause some pain, but he insists they are needed to curb triple-digit inflation and have sustainable economic growth in the future. But concern is evident among people, even with those who support the self-declared “anarcho-capitalist” who took office as president Sunday.

Julia González, 35, is a Paraguayan national who has lived in Argentina for more than a decade. She is in favor of Milei, but she admits she is worried following the announcements.

“If (the bus fare) goes up, my salary will be spent on transport,” González, the mother of a teenage girl, told The Associated Press as she waited at the bus stop. She works as a housemaid in downtown and uses public transport daily. She says she and her husband are “juggling” to make ends meet on a total income of 300,000 pesos ($365) a month.

But she also tries to be optimistic. “Milei has been here for two or three days. I will trust him, so that