News of Agustino Fontevecchia

Agustino Fontevecchia

The death of the argentine currency, the peso.

The peso's got a fever and the only prescription is more dollars

24-10-2020 08:08 Whereas classical economic theory suggests that markets create efficient prices through a cumulative aggregation of information, thus allowing market players to accede to perfect information, the current situation in the City Porteña is one of absolute price opacity.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

President Fernandez and former president, Mauricio Macri.

A PRESIDENTIAL TETE Á TETE?

Enough with the bickering – Alberto and Mauricio should meet

17-10-2020 09:05 At an extremely troublesome moment for the world, Argentina is engaging in ridiculous self-inflicted shocks of uncertainty.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

FOREIGN (AND DOMESTIC) POLICY

Venezuela: Argentina's old/new problem

10-10-2020 09:07 It doesn’t really matter whether Cristina is calling the shots, whether her henchmen are acting independently, or if Alberto is acting out of his own accord, trying to please his vice-president and keep his coalition united. The end result is the same: increased uncertainty, which ultimately feeds Argentina’s risk thermometer: the dollar-peso exchange rate.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

This war between Big Techis (Google and Facebook) is about money, but it is also about the future makeup of an information ecosystem that is currently trending toward the gutter, defined by misinformation, fake news, and “viral content” that is making people addicted to behaviours determined by algorithms whose only objective is to make more money.

TECH & MEDIA

Journalism, beware of Google’s billion-dollar siren calls!

03-10-2020 08:40 The largest threat for Google and Facebook, and Big Tech in general, is regulation.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Alberto Fernandez, President of Argentina.

LA GRIETA

What we've got here is failure to communicate

26-09-2020 09:13 There are at least two major elements to conducting public policy: the construction and execution of successful strategic plans and their communication, in order to generate the correct expectations.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

The future of Argentina: chavism VS neoliberalism.

CULTURAL CRUSADES

Is Argentina really on track to become the next Venezuela?

19-09-2020 09:44 Cristina’s old agenda – the one that expired in 2015 with her last presidential mandate – appears to be back on the table.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

If we are successful, we will find an economically sustainable model for indenpendent investigative journalism in Argentina.

DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTIONS

Why Perfil is launching a paywall

12-09-2020 09:58 There’s no better time than now for Grupo Perfil to launch a paywall – here’s why we’ve taken that decision.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

ALBERTO & HORACIO

Past the point of no return?

05-09-2020 09:26 The early days of the Covid-19 outbreak generated unparalleled collaboration between Frente de Todos and Juntos por el Cambio. Are we past the point of no return?

by Agustino Fontevecchia

President Alberto Fernandez and Rodriguez Larreta.

LA GRIETA

Argentina’s burnout syndrome

29-08-2020 08:28 The lack of social contact, confinement, and a current state of alert given protracted panic is causing anxiety and cognitively wearing down our population, making the future recovery even more uncertain.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Pundits indicate that both coalitions are suffering from extreme tension, and the real question is how long will the acting leaders of each space last until either their will is dominated by the hawks or the groups balkanise.

ALBERTO & HORACIO

Don’t hate the player, hate the game

22-08-2020 09:06 Pundits indicate that both coalitions are suffering from extreme tension, and the real question is how long will the acting leaders of each space last until either their will is dominated by the hawks or the groups balkanise.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

JUDICIAL REFORM

In the oven

15-08-2020 09:59 What’s troubling, and could mark a complete breaking point between the ruling coalition and the opposition, is the president’s judicial reform bill.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Cristina Fernández de Kirchner began legal action against Google this week, seeking “millions of dollars” in damages from the Silicon Valley giant.

CYBER MILITANTS

Cristina vs. Google and the invisible battle for Wikipedia

08-08-2020 09:07 It’s unclear whether Cristina Fernández de Kirchner is aware or not, but a silent culture war is being fought in the digital theatre. Wikipedia is one of the main battlegrounds.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

The chief executives of the world’s most powerful companies, all of them Silicon Valley giants, faced US lawmakers this week at a hearing of the House Antitrust subcommittee.

ANTITRUST AND REGULATION

Big Tech’s Funday in Congress

01-08-2020 10:18 Amazon, Facebook, Google, and Apple have become some of the most powerful organisations in the world – and the global coronavirus pandemic has only made their dominant position even stronger.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Argentina is in the midst of an internal debate regarding the issue of wealth and the definition of economic success.

THE RICH LIST

Argentina’s richest and the perception of wealth

25-07-2020 10:14 The 'Forbes' list generates all sorts of mixed emotions, from admiration to jealousy and contempt.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

An experienced observer of Argentine politics explained the recent surge in friendly fire among different factions within the ruling Frente de Todos coalition, mainly aimed at the leader of the pan-Peronist grouping, President Alberto Fernández.

LA GRIETA

‘The Peronists aren’t fighting, they’re copulating’

18-07-2020 10:22 Is it possible to build a unity government with this level of internal aggression, and with Cristina as the major power broker within your leading coalition?

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Argentina is very quickly descending into a dangerous spiral of hate and division. This situation isn't exactly new, but it actually accurately reflects the general political topography of Argentine society.

POLARISATION AT WHAT PRICE?

Argentina: Great at failing miserably at democracy

11-07-2020 08:19 What level of tolerance to dissent are we willing to accept? And at which point does the discussion about who thinks what shut out the underlying debates we should be having?

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Many K corruption cases will end up being dropped due to procedural abuses.

ILLEGAL ESPIONAGE SCANDAL

The curse of power in Argentina

04-07-2020 08:06 Several of the major corruption cases of the K decade could end up being dropped due to procedural abuses, aiding the newfound lack of political motivation of most magistrates.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

CRISTINA & ALBERTO

Is she winning?

27-06-2020 08:23 The major shock to the president’s credibility, though, was the failed expropriation of agro-giant Vicentín. Not only are a lot more people against the measure, but also the sensation that it’s of Cristina’s making, not Alberto’s.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

A Peronist expropriation, and maybe even nationalisation, sounds like the best way to burn a lot of money straight into inefficient bureaucracy and corruption.

EXPROPRIATION OF VICENTIN

Vicentin’s expropriation and how to break bad news

20-06-2020 09:26 A Peronist expropriation, and maybe even nationalisation, sounds like the best way to burn a lot of money straight into inefficient bureaucracy and corruption.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Illicit surveillance by intelligence agency.

ILLEGAL ESPIONAGE

The spy's ghost

13-06-2020 08:22 Either the intelligence agencies were an absolute mess during the Macri years, or they were complicit in not only gathering illegal information but also extortion and all sorts of other improprieties.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

The obsession with the dollar in every Argentine government.

ON CAPITAL FLIGHT

Cristina & Macri’s pornographic obsession with the dollar

06-06-2020 08:38 Monetary debasement is a policy that every Argentine government since the return of democracy has collaborated with, and those “smart” enough to play the game have always stored their wealth as far as they can from Argentine pesos, Macri and Cristina included.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Judicial reforms will accelerate in coming days and weeks as the “new normal” of Covid-19 gives way to “the usual” political agenda. This is past policy adopted by previous governments.

SPIES AND LIES

Once again, time is going backwards

30-05-2020 09:09 Alberto’s Frente de Todos coalition is walking in his predecessor’s footsteps, perpetuating the never-ending cycle of institutional reform of the Judiciary and the intelligence agencies.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

President Alberto Fernández’s bold bet on a young and inexperienced economy minister is close to revealing its worth. Martín Guzmán has led a meticulous and relatively civilised battle with Wall Street titans.

ARGENTINA IN DEFAULT

One step at a time

23-05-2020 07:56 Whatever blueprint Argentina and its creditors leave for the rest of the world’s increasingly troubled debtors, the nation will have to face “the day after” sooner or later, where some 89 percent of the population has directly or indirectly received a public subsidy during this crisis, while the state is absolutely broke.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

The future multiple effects of Coronavirus in Argentine economy.

The virus

Coronavirus exhaustion

16-05-2020 07:37 The pesos being injected into the system – an emergency tool that few have questioned domestically and abroad – haven’t purely been used to finance direct consumption of basic goods and services such as food, or absorbed into peso-denominated assets. As is the norm in Argentina, they have found their way into US dollars.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Before the Covid-19 outbreak, Argentina was already crushed under a mountain of debt that was impossible to pay, pushing the embattled nation toward an inevitable default.

DEBT RESTRUCTURING

Argentina’s debt showdown between Wall Street and rockstar economists

09-05-2020 08:39 This is a tense showdown featuring some of the world’s most powerful players in international finance, pitting divergent interests against one another in a scenario of absolute uncertainty.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Crisis and opportunity

A quick global rebound after the global pandemic?

02-05-2020 09:29 Whether we figure it out or not, the global society has the tools to quickly reverse the economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Guzman´s responsability regarding the Argentinian economy

Coronacrisis

Default: a ticking time bomb

25-04-2020 10:03 An initial interpretation of what Guzmán says — and does — should put everyone on high alert, as a default appears imminent.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

DEBT RESTRUCTURING

Argentina’s coronavirus default dance

18-04-2020 09:46 It sounds like a decent deal for Argentina, even if it’s impossible to put together sound economic projections in the midst of the global coronavirus pandemic. Yet, those sitting on the opposite side of the negotiating table feel it’s too good for Argentina.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Latin American nations are in a worse shape to face this current downturn than they were during the so-called Global Financial Crisis.

THE GLOBAL PANDEMIC

We don’t have what it takes to face this economic crisis

11-04-2020 08:18 It is difficult to envision how Argentina, the region and the world will come out of this mess unless a generalised, global set of solutions is put on the table.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

If we are to avert a global economic meltdown that matches or exceeds the Great Depression, it is time for a new level of cooperation that seems unlikely in a context of rising nationalism, xenophobia, and the intense polarisation of electorates.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Hitting the reset button to avoid a new Great Depression

04-04-2020 08:17 So far so good, it seemed. Yet the emergence of partisan bickering this weekhas tainted what appeared to be one of the most successful state and political reactions to the coronavirus crisis, amplified by the botched responses of countries like Spain and Italy, and leaders like Donald Trump and Jair Bolsonaro.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

More than 350,000 families are forced to leave their homes to get water, adding up to 1.2 million people. Is it possible for these people to respect the quarantine?

GLOBAL PANDEMIC

Coronavirus: poverty and ethics

28-03-2020 08:17 Assuming social distancing enforced through differing levels of quarantines is indeed the necessary initial response to the pandemic, how would one deal with the more than 320,000 households in a state of “critical overcrowding” in Argentina?

by Agustino Fontevecchia

For President Fernández, the coronavirus outbreak could end up being an incredible opportunity.

GLOBAL CRISIS

Coronavirus outbreak could be an opportunity for Alberto Fernández

21-03-2020 09:26 Fernández and his Cabinet had only one tangible mission upon taking power: renegotiating Argentina’s massive debt pile in terms that would give the economy time to “get back on its feet.”

by Agustino Fontevecchia

The current Covid-19 outbreak has been declared a pandemic, and it follows in the footsteps of at least eight severe pandemics since the 20th century.

GLOBAL CRISIS

An infected market meets a pandemic flu

14-03-2020 07:43 Global financial markets had relied on monetary stimulus to carry an unsustainable rally for too long. Finally, the Covid-19 outbreak broke the camel’s back, and it’s tough to see where the light at the end of the tunnel will come from.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Some within President Fernández’s government are already putting together the legal arguments to go after Macri and his officials.

LAWFARE AND GOVERNMENT

Lawfare reloaded: Cristina, Macri & Alberto

07-03-2020 10:25 It is imperative that corruption accusations are investigated thoroughly, both under the Kirchner and Macri administrations. Grave accusations are thrown around loosely in Argentina, yet there are few instances in which they have actually gone to trial.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

As time has gone by, Google, Facebook, Amazon and others have become the world’s most powerful lobbyists, throwing around coins at starving contributors of the digital ecosystem in order to keep them at bay.

DIGITAL ECOSYSTEM

The dystopian digital world

29-02-2020 09:56 Google, Facebook, Amazon and others control both the flow of web traffic– and the flow of dollars. Sitting on both sides of the counter gives them unfair advantage over other players.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

The rest of the economic plan will have to wait. Fernández has put in place emergency measures aimed at containing inflation, limiting excessive fiscal expenditure, and reactivating the economy.

DEBT CRISIS

Beware of the vultures

22-02-2020 10:34 The IMF was acknowledging that the previous terms of the stand-by agreement, signed with the government of Mauricio Macri, under the careful supervision of Nicolás Dujovne, were absolutely fictitious, and that it is willing to give Argentina time to grow rather than focus on austerity.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Mrs. Fernández de Kirchner chooses to forget when other branches of the State she managed were used to pressure her political enemies, including tax authority AFIP under Ricardo Echegaray and intelligence agency SIDE’s wiretaps.

CORRUPTION

Selective amnesia, ‘lawfare’ and ‘political prisoners’

15-02-2020 09:47 What was originally a small headache is escalating to migraine status for President Fernández. Internal fissures between the fringe fanatical Kirchnerites and more moderate Peronists has reached the top levels of governments

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Judge Bonadio is pulled between heaven and hell, between the Olympus and the Underworld of Hades.

JUDICIARY

Bonadio, between heaven and hell

08-02-2020 07:59 The death of federal judge Claudio Bonadio in the first week of February once again cracked open the abyss of our very particular form of polarisation, which even has its own name (la grieta).

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Pictures created a direct form of communication that was immediately more efficient than text, in the same way that video — first on TV and later through smartphones — is today’s preferred medium.

CONTRADICTIONS

Pictures speak louder than words

01-02-2020 08:57 Peronists have made an art of posing at asados, sipping on some mate, and generally looking merry, in order to indicate to their followers that they are getting things done.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

“We are still a few years out in the US from getting a federal law to guarantee [parental leave] for everyone. It’s only a question of when, not a question of if”, says Alexis Ohanian.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

Digital visionary Alexis Ohanian on democratising football and big tech regulation

01-02-2020 07:38 US entrepreneur and investor Alexis Ohanian, who co-founded Reddit, talks investment, paternity leave and why he chose to invest in Gloria, a new app founded by Argentines that looks set to shake up the world of football.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

It’s the closest thing to a “honeymoon” President Fernández can hope for, given the current state of things.

NEW ERA IN ARGENTINA

A little less conversation, a little more action please

25-01-2020 11:01 The connective strings of the Albertista narrative up until now have relied on two major concepts: blame Macri and the neoliberal gorrillas, and “Peronist optimism.”

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Now, Alberto and his team must avoid relying on the peso-dollar exchange rate, and an appreciation of the peso, as his tool against inflation, and therefore re-activation.

ARGENTINA’S ECONOMIC TURMOIL

No plan (B)?

18-01-2020 07:58 With Alberto having set March 31 as the deadline for any restructuring plan, it appears irreversible damage to the embattled private sector will continue at least until then, undermining the potential recovery. Even if Guzmán comes back with an acceptable proposal, how will the economy grow?

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Whether Nisman’s accusation against Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, Héctor Timerman, and others for allegedly trying to grant Iranian officials immunity in exchange for funds is valid or not depends mainly on one’s political position.

THE DEATH OF ALBERTO NISMAN

Nisman, AMIA & the never-ending story

11-01-2020 08:03 The most basic details regarding Alberto Nisman’s demise have become the centre of an ideological conflict that should instead be purely criminalistic and scientific.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

OLIVER STONE INTERVIEW

Collateral damage and the ‘American Empire’ – Oliver Stone heads south again

04-01-2020 07:49 An exclusive interview with the legendary film director, who visited Latin America once more as the region shifts back to the left.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

At the end of the day, Macri’s “plan” imploded catastrophically, revealing its internal weaknesses.

FERNÁNDEZ’S PLAN FOR 2020

Buying time

28-12-2019 08:59 It is difficult to imagine how Alberto Fernández’s pompous rhetoric, and lack of a concrete and structural plan, will “put Argentina back on its feet,” as he promised throughout the campaign.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

In charge of the Economy Ministry now is Martín Guzmán, an anti-austerity economist who cut his teeth under Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz at the prestigious Columbia University in New York.

NEW ERA IN ARGENTINA

In defence of Martín Guzmán

21-12-2019 09:50 The current state of Argentina’s economy is perilous. The typical metaphor is that of a ticking time-bomb, the same one that was used when Macri took over the reins from Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Will Alberto be able to live up to his promises of being “the president of the unity of the Argentine people,” as he was presented time and time again in Congress?

JUDICIAL REFORM

Alberto’s utopian ideal clashes with a putrid Judiciary – and CFK

14-12-2019 08:55 If Alberto gets this right, then the building blocks of a society much less prone to corruption would be put in place, which of course would help in constructing credibility, governability, and prosperity.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

A series of (unfortunate) events laid bare the relationship the Fernández-Fernández tandem will cultivate with dissent.

ALBERTO AL GOBIERNO, CRISTINA AL PODER’

Alberto, Cristina and a distaste for institutions

07-12-2019 11:08 The same corrupt justice system that was subservient to the Kirchners during their glory days, and which vehemently went after Kirchnerite corruption under Macri, will most probably favour Cristina once she assumes the Vice-Presidency.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

“Inequality is inefficient,” reads a section of the report which highlights a strong correlation between higher productivity and lower levels of economic inequality.

POVERTY AND INEQUALITY

Latin America’s poverty trap

30-11-2019 08:44 The real problem is that poverty is on the rise once again, and it’s not just the fault of President Mauricio Macri’s disastrous management of the economy.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

What Argentina faces is much more profound than facing its own internal demons.

FERNÁNDEZ’S ILLUSION

The myth of Latin American prosperity

23-11-2019 09:50 Today, our continent faces the impossible task of becoming competitive on a global scale with an absolute lack of infrastructure, limited credit, cramped capital investment for decades, and galloping inequality.

by Agustino Fontevecchia