A year after becoming president, Javier Milei has been praised inside and outside Argentina for reining in galloping inflation. But his economic policies have inflicted widespread hardship.

Milei's series of austerity measures has been brutal. Unemployment has climbed, economic activity has declined and poverty has surged. But now signs have emerged that Argentina’s bizarre and long mismanaged economy is starting to look a little more normal.

The populist president enjoys widespread public support, but analysts say rising poverty and unemployment could spin into a political maelstrom.