MEXICO CITY (appro).—Despite the increase in income, the inequality gaps were marked in Mexican households according to the results of the National Survey of Household Income and Expenses (ENIGH) 2022.
Initially, the households with the highest income in the country received 66 thousand 899 pesos per month; In contrast, those with fewer resources registered an average income of 4,470 pesos.
In other words, households in the 10th decile or 10% of households with the highest income received 15 times more income than those in the 1st decile or 10% with the lowest income.
According to the analysis of the Mexican Institute for Competitiveness (IMCO), the disparity was also reflected by gender.
The average monthly monetary income for men reached 9,762 pesos, and for women 6,360 pesos, which translates into a 35% income gap by sex.
This means that for every 100 pesos of income received by a man, a woman earns 65. The disparity was also reflected between households headed by women and men.
The ENIGH 2022 comes after a period of economic instability derived from the covid-19 pandemic, which makes it possible to compare the economic situation of households with respect to the start of the crisis in 2020, as well as the levels previously observed (in 2016 and 2018).
Broadly speaking, the figures reflect a recovery in income from work and an adjustment in the spending patterns of families in terms of spending on food, education and health.
“The results show that, despite the increases observed in current income, these inequalities persist, and the disparity between the country’s household spending possibilities is still far from closing,” warned the IMCO.
On average, during 2022, households received 22,437 pesos per month, of which nine out of 10 pesos come from current income such as remuneration for work or property rent, while the remaining amount corresponds to income from financial and capital perceptions. as loan.
The main source of current household income is employment, since income from work has contributed more than 60% of the resources received since 2016.
On the other hand, pensions, retirements, scholarships, remittances and/or social programs together represent the second highest income. Each household received 3,643 pesos per month, on average, for this concept.
By state: Baja California Sur had the highest average income in the country, and Chiapas the lowest. The difference between the two was 56%, that is, for every 100 pesos that a household in Baja California Sur received, one in Chiapas received 44.
According to ENIGH, 38% of the monthly spending goes to food and, on average, households spend 5,19 pesos per month on this item.
However, the proportion is higher for lower-income households, who dedicate 51% of their spending to these products; in higher-income households, the proportion is 28%.
Likewise, average spending on education fell between 2016 and 2022, going from 1,593 to 1,307 pesos per month.
Regarding the different socioeconomic strata, households with the lowest income allocate 5% to education, while households in the 10th decile allocate 14% of their spending to it.
Regarding health spending, it registered a decrease of 6.8% compared to 2020 (going from 481 pesos to 448 pesos per month per household).
However, in 2022 they spent an amount 1.3 times greater than that allocated to health care in 2018.
In higher-income households, the average monthly health expenditure was 1,457 pesos, while low-income households spent 187 pesos per month on health care for their members.
