President Javier Milei defended his first eight months of government and ruled out an upcoming devaluation of the peso on Wednesday as he delivered a speech at a Council of the Americas forum.
Hailing his administration for making “the biggest adjustment in the history of mankind,” the outspoken libertarian economist claimed that the entire world is talking about the “Argentine miracle.”
Addressing establishment leaders and top business minds at the summit, hosted by the Americas Society/Council of the Americas (AS/COA) and the Argentine Chamber of Commerce, Milei voiced praise in particular for Economy Minister Luis Caputo.
Caputo, Milei’s top economic figurehead, was praised for his great “achievement” in delivering a fiscal surplus in the first tranche of government.
“It’s the first time in history that we have a positive financial balance without being in default," declared Milei. "In six months we managed to end the quasi-fiscal deficit, in only six months” noting the end of money-printing at the Treasury.
Addressing some of the business industry’s key questions, Milei once again ruled out an upcoming devaluation of the peso and insisted the two-percent crawling peg would stay.
"We’re not willing to devalue to ruin Argentines,” said the La Libertad Avanza leader.
Milei, who spoke before the release of data showing that monthly inflation slowed to four percent in July, said that his government had a handle on consumer prices.
“I have to acknowledge Minister Caputo,” the President said. “I have a crawling peg system, we’re enabling that two-percent inflation floor and if we remove it, inflation would be getting to an 0.7-percent monthly rate,” he said.
Milei claimed the economy was in recovery, but admitted that the recession hit its peak in April and May. Argentina’s economy contracted by 5.1 percent in the first quarter of the year, driven by a slowdown in construction and manufacturing.
Moving onto the ‘cepo,’ the word used locally to refer to the country’s strict currency controls, Milei said that he was eager to remove them.
“Nobody wants to leave foreign exchange restrictions more than I do,” he claimed.
"We have foreign exchange restrictions because we still haven’t finished solving stock problems," he said, slamming critics who have accused him of “intervening” in the market.
“I don’t know whether economists had their brains bloated or whether they’re asses," he shot off.
The President called on the business community to back him, stating that his administration is embarking on a cultural change in Argentina.
"We’re on a path of a change of paradigm, not only economic, but also social, political and cultural, in the opposite direction of other countries lately,” said Milei.
Argentina’s head of state then trained his ire at UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, the Labour leader.
“While others propose censorship, we propose freedom of speech. In England, since the socialists arrived in power, they’re urging people to post on social networks, like journalists here would like to because they’ve lost the monopoly of the microphone and using the tool to extort, besmirch and defame without any cost,” Milei ranted.
– TIMES/PERFIL
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