Uzbekistan has updated its minimal poverty-defining level of consumer spending for the population to $51 from $48.9 dollars per month. This is already the second increase in the indicator since the beginning of the year, which is explained by rising gas and electricity prices.
Minimum consumer spending is calculated in Uzbekistan based on the daily neds of citizens on means spent on food and non-food products and services. According to Picodi.com, Uzbekistan is among the top ten countries with the highest spending on food, with citizens spend 46.5% of their earnings on edibles.
Overall, annual food inflation in the country reached one of its lowest levels in recent years in 2023, totaling 9.7% annually. In March 2024, food inflation contracted even more, to 7.8% annually, according to international data portal, Trading Economics.
The Center for Economic Research and Reforms says that the country managed to lift more than a million Uzbeks out of poverty in 2023. This was due to higher wages, social payments, benefits, and increases in income from agriculture.
