News of economy

A taxi cab passes in front of the Mexican flag flying at the Plaza de la Constitucion (Zocalo) in Mexico City, Mexico, on Friday, April 13, 2018. Mexico's peso extended losses for a third day amid profit-taking outflows as the currency failed to stay strong past 18.00 key level.

New Latin American government bonds are rarest find for EM buyers

05-08-2022 22:16 It’s slim pickings for investors seeking fresh sovereign bonds from Latin America as the region’s pipeline of new foreign debt empties faster than in any other pocket of emerging markets.

Pedestrians on Florida Street in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Friday, Feb. 25, 2022. Argentina's economy capped a strong second half of growth as it emerged from a long recession last year ahead of an expected new deal in the coming weeks with the International Monetary Fund.

Bloomberg

Argentina pledges end of money printing to battle 60% inflation

03-08-2022 22:32 New Economy Minister announces plan to slow down Argentina’s financial crisis hours after he was sworn in. Sergio Massa says he will stop money printing to slow inflation.

Argentina's international reserves are rapidly disappearing

Bloomberg

Argentina is running out of cash to stave off devaluation

02-08-2022 18:10 Argentina teeters on the precipice of severe financial crisis. Peso devaluation looms, with potential for hyperinflation.

Sergio Massa, Congress' Lower House President, center, speaks during an election night rally at the Frente de Todos party headquarters in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Sunday, Nov. 14, 2021. Argentina’s ruling coalition was defeated in the country’s midterm elections on Sunday, and it’s poised to lose its Senate majority in a setback for the government at a time it faces a wrecked economy.

Bloomberg

Argentina’s New Economy Minister Readies Plan to Boost Dollar Revenue

01-08-2022 19:01 New Economy Minister Sergio Massa is preparing a set of measures to address one of Argentina’s key problems: a chronic shortage of dollars that has caused the US currency to soar in parallel exchange markets.

The Central Bank of Argentina in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Friday, Feb. 25, 2022. Argentina's economy capped a strong second half of growth as it emerged from a long recession last year ahead of an expected new deal in the coming weeks with the International Monetary Fund.

Bloomberg

Argentina moves to hike key rate by 800bps with local note offer

28-07-2022 16:44 Argentina’s central bank offered its Leliq note, which is used as the benchmark interest rate, at a rate of 60%, representing an 800 basis-point increase and the largest hike in almost three years.

Argentina Appoints New Minister of Economy Amid Political Turmoil.

Bloomberg

Argentina’s bonds rise amid reports of a cabinet shakeup

28-07-2022 15:34 The markets have responded favourably to rumours Economy Minister Silvina Batakis could be replaced by lower house speaker Sergio Massa, which was reported by local media late Wednesday night.

Minister of Economy Silvina Batakis gestures during a press conference to announce measures to control rampant inflation on July 11, 2022 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Bloomberg

Argentina Economy Minister says she has strong political support

27-07-2022 15:55 New Economy Minister for Argentina Silvina Batakis tells Washington reporters she will stabilise economy, claiming strong political support from the government.

Bloomberg

Key Argentina creditor hints at withholding new funding

26-07-2022 13:42 Argentina faces further potential isolation after one of its last-standing creditors suggested it won’t give new funding until the government organises itself better.

The Central Bank of Argentina in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Thursday, July 7, 2022. Argentina's parallel exchange rate, untethered from the government's strict currency controls, has fallen 17% so far this week, prompting Buenos Aires shop owners to post signs announcing a 20% mark-up on all listed prices.

Bloomberg

Argentina unveils currency measures as black-market peso slumps

21-07-2022 19:28 Foreign tourists can exchange up to US$5,000 in a new exchange rate revealed by the government, which is attempting to perk up the currency after a slump for the ‘dólar blue'

A shopper purchases groceries at a market hosted by the Union of Popular Economic Workers (UTEP) in front of the National Congress building in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Thursday, July 14, 2022. Argentine consumer prices rose at the fastest pace in more than three decades in June, with worse expected after Economy Minister Martin Guzman quit this month. Some workers are choosing to be paid in cryptocurrency to avoid inflation: Argentina has the highest proportion of workers in the world being paid in digital currency.

Bloomberg

Crypto crash be damned, some workers still choose digital pay

21-07-2022 14:41 Despite crypto instability, being paid in digital currency is the preference of many remote workers in Argentina, Latin America and the rest of the world.

Vendors sell groceries at a market hosted by the Union of Popular Economic Workers (UTEP) in front of the National Congress building in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Thursday, July 14, 2022. Argentine consumer prices rose at the fastest pace in more than three decades in June, with worse expected after Economy Minister Martin Guzman quit this month.

Bloomberg

Argentina’s black-market peso hits record as crisis mounts

20-07-2022 15:31 The unofficial Argentine peso has dropped to a historic low this Tuesday, which has exacerbated the crisis provoked by the resignation of former Economy minister Martín Guzmán earlier this month.

The sun sets over Buenos Aires, on July 13, 2022.

THE WEEK IN REVIEW

Stories that caught our eye: July 8 to 15

15-07-2022 15:00 A selection of stories that caught our eye over the last seven weeks in Argentina.

Editorial

Plan B or Plan C(FK)?

15-07-2022 15:00 The more immediate challenge for Silvina Batakis to make it into the next month is the major renewal of peso debt, now only a fortnight away – a hurdle too high for Martín Guzmán.

BLOOMBERG

Central Bank holds key rate at 52% amid faster inflation

15-07-2022 13:11 Decision to maintain the key rate at 52% takes financial markets by surprise.

A tractor transfers soybeans into a silo bag in Venado Tuerto, Argentina.

BLOOMBERG

Runaway price hikes has soy farmers hoarding all they can

15-07-2022 13:07 In Argentina, the top exporter of soybean products, farmers are hanging on to more of their crops than normal to defend against rampant inflation in yet another blow to global food supplies.

Argentina’s opportunity

The opposite of drowning in a glass of water

15-07-2022 13:00 Argentina, eternally in crisis and trained in resilience, clearly has an opportunity, and the worsening of the situation may be pushing the country toward a resolution, even if certain politicians do all they can to resist it.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

And that reminds me

A trail of two (big) chitties

15-07-2022 13:00 Throughout most of this century Argentina has sought to make a virtue out of necessity by demonising debt so that if that was ever a virtue, it has become a deadly vice – the options to an inflationary expansion of the money supply are few and far between.

by Michael Soltys

Supreme Court Justice Ricardo Lorenzetti.

INTERVIEW / PERIODISMO PURO

Ricardo Lorenzetti: ‘We’ve passed from a democracy of projects to vetocracy’

15-07-2022 08:00 Supreme Court justice discusses his experience in and the future of the Judiciary, ecology and the environment, and the problems facing Argentina and the wider world.

by Jorge Fontevecchia

Members of social organisations protests on July 14, 2022, in Plaza de Mayo square in front of Casa Rosada in Buenos Aires, to demand that the government expand social plans and take urgent action against high inflation.

ECONOMIC CRISIS

Inflation hits 64% year-on-year, analysts fear worse yet to come

14-07-2022 19:05 No respite from price hikes in Argentina: Inflation hit 5.3% in June, increases totalled 36.2% in first half of this year.

BLOOMBERG - ANALYSIS

Inflation hit 30-year high ahead of Guzmán's exit

14-07-2022 18:11 Consumer prices in Argentina rose at the fastest pace in more than three decades in June, with worse expected after the economy minister quit this month.

A store notifies customers of a liquidation sale before permanently closing in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Thursday, July 7, 2022.

BLOOMBERG - ANALYSIS

Argentines brace for 90% inflation after economy minister’s exit

14-07-2022 09:18 Consulting firms in Buenos Aires are predicting that Argentines face the prospect of 90% inflation by year end.

Economic crisis

Government tightens 'cepo': ‘tourist dollar tax’ raised to 45%

14-07-2022 01:07 Argentina’s government increases tax on card purchases in foreign currency from 35% to 45%; Tourists will be the most affected by measure, which kicks in Thursday; Rate remains at 35% for dollar savings.

Opponents of the government of President Alberto Fernández hold a protest outside the Casa Rosada in Buenos Aires, on July 9, 2022. A political crisis in inflation-ravaged Argentina exacerbated by the economy minister's resignation has spooked markets and generated fears resulting in panic buying and hasty price hikes, as the informal exchange rate soars.

ANALYSIS

Argentina’s economic signals need stronger backing, analysts say

13-07-2022 12:28 Analysts say moderate, prudent policy signals that Economy Minister Silvina Batakis announced Monday lack political support, face execution risks and won’t fix the country’s structural problems.

An agricultural producer stands on Ruta Nacional 14 during a demonstration against the government of President Alberto Fernández in Gualeguaychú, on July 13, 2022.

AGRICULTURE

Farmers stage 24-hour strike against government, citing 'tax pressure'

13-07-2022 12:26 Farmers in Argentina ceased sales for 24 hours on Wednesday as agricultural industry leaders criticised government policy, tax pressures and fuel shortages.

A directional map for travellers at Ezeiza International Airport in Buenos Aires.

TRAVEL & TOURISM

Airline exodus sees Argentina lose connections to 18 cities worldwide

12-07-2022 16:40 Seventeen airlines have left Argentina over the past three years, according to a new report; In the first four months of 2022, there were 50% fewer international flights than in the same period of 2019.

Driving the frenzy is the silvery metal’s allure as a commodity of the future: It’s one of the key components for the rechargeable batteries used to power electric vehicles.

BLOOMBERG

China lithium giant expands in Argentina with US$962-million deal

12-07-2022 15:58 Chinese battery-materials giant Ganfeng Lithium Co is ratcheting up efforts to expand in Argentina, an emerging supply hot-spot for the mineral.

In this file photo taken on September 15, 2021 aerial view showing smoke rising from an illegal fire destroying Amazonia rainforest in Porto Velho, Rondonia state, Brazil.

BLOOMBERG

IDB boosts Latin America ESG bond campaign with US$1-billion push

12-07-2022 15:55 Inter-American Investment Corporation is helping companies in Latin America and the Caribbean bring about US$1 billion of environmental, social and governance bonds.

Argentina's Central Bank, in Buenos Aires City.

BLOOMBERG

Government may offer put option on local bonds to entice buyers

12-07-2022 10:03 Central Bank in talks with private lenders about adding a put option to local bonds, according to sources.

Signage outside a Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) gas station in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Friday, June 17, 2022. Brazil's state-controlled oil giant Petrobras increased fuel prices in a political setback for President Jair Bolsonaro, who is fighting to contain inflation in an election year.

Brazil Elections

Brazil annual inflation rate rises to 11.89%

11-07-2022 17:01 June brings accelerated inflation to Brazil, driven mainly by increased food costs, as Jair Bolsonaro’s re-election looms.

The headquarters of the Economy Ministry in Buenos Aires.

Markets

Argentine debt plumbs new depths as political tensions mount

11-07-2022 15:43 Even by the standards of Argentina’s debt crisis and default of 2020, the nation’s sovereign bonds are now trading at unprecedented lows.

Economy Minister Silvina Batakis gestures during a press conference held at the Economy Ministry headquarters in Buenos Aires, on July 11, 2022.

BLOOMBERG - ANALYSIS

Argentina needs to stick to IMF agreement, says minister

11-07-2022 15:32 In her first press conference, Silvina Batakis said Argentina would continue working to balance its fiscal accounts, promote positive real interest rates, and move forward with reducing energy subsidies.

Economy Minister Silvina Batakis gives a press conference in Buenos Aires.

NEW ECONOMY MINISTER

Batakis: Argentina will honour economic goals agreed with IMF

11-07-2022 13:34 New Economy Minister Silvina Batakis tells the press that Argentina is “not going to spend more than we have," but experts warn that “seeing is believing.”

Opponents of the government of President Alberto Fernández hold a protest outside Casa Rosada presidential palace in Buenos Aires, on July 9, 2022.

INDEPENDENCE DAY RALLY

Anti-government protesters take to streets on Independence Day

10-07-2022 09:27 Protesters march to Plaza de Mayo and Casa Rosada to demonstrate against government on Independence Day.

POLITICS

The capitulation of Martín Guzmán and the struggle of Sergio Massa

09-07-2022 07:30 After a weekend of fury, a newly reconfigured power structure has been put in place that promises to keep us on our toes, with the vice-president continuing to gain territory.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

And that reminds me…

From Gooseman to Batgirl?

09-07-2022 07:30 Recommended to President Fernández as having “the necessary dose of heterodoxy and the indispensable dose of orthodoxy,” Guzmán was eventually found wanting on both counts with the latter front more fatal.

by Michael Soltys

EDITORIAL

Leaps in the dark

09-07-2022 06:00 Always subordinating economic policy to electoral strategy in classic populist style, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner seems convinced that a 2023 election irretrievably lost with Martín Guzmán’s IMF orientation can be turned around with an extreme transformation.

A shopper leaves a consumer electronics store in Buenos Aires on July 6.

BLOOMBERG

Overnight 20% price jump supercharges inflation crisis

08-07-2022 11:15 Before the peso plunges even further and before retailers can jack up prices further, Argentines are rushing out to buy their essentials as soon as possible.

Economy Minister Silvina Batakis talks to the press after her swearing-in ceremony at the Casa Rosada in Buenos Aires on July 4, 2022.

THE WEEK IN REVIEW

Stories that caught our eye: July 1 to 8

08-07-2022 09:51 A selection of stories that caught our eye over the last seven days in Argentina.

Another week in Argentina

Resignation, transition, succession: Inside Guzmán's last days and Batakis' first

08-07-2022 09:48 The economy minister’s decision to step down, the reaction to it and how the government found a replacement – inside a momentous week in Argentina.

by Juan Luis González

OPINION

Last supper with Guzmán

08-07-2022 09:38 Guzmán backed the laws which increased taxes but not those increasing spending … to reduce or not to reduce the deficit is the question separating the vice-president and the ex-minister.

by Jorge Fontevecchia

A shopper, pictured outside a shuttered store in Buenos Aires.

LIVING IN CRISIS

Nervous buying and price hikes in Argentina amid inflation fears

07-07-2022 23:49 Economic turmoil has provoked a wave of fear, triggering a surge in the value of the dollar on Argentina's parallel exchange markets and a sharp rise in prices.

Economy Minister Silvina Batakis and President Alberto Fernández.

THE CHALLENGES AHEAD

New minister Batakis takes office in an Argentina full of uncertainty

07-07-2022 23:34 Silvina Batakis faces a number of key challenges and decisions; Issues like inflation, the IMF deal, the fiscal deficit and subsidies top her in-tray.

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva.

IMF DEBT DEAL

IMF ‘looking forward’ to working with Batakis at ‘difficult moment’

07-07-2022 16:06 New economy minister speaks with multilateral lender’s chief Kristalina Georgieva, who says Batakis confirmed her “commitment” to IMF refinancing programme.

Passers-by walk in front of Argentina's National Bank in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on July 4, 2022.

DEBT TALKS

Paris Club requires Argentina stick to IMF deal to rework debt

07-07-2022 14:20 Paris Club group of wealthy creditors says government must give assurances that it will comply with IMF deal if talks over restructuring of debt are to continue.

A rise in food costs stemming from the pandemic made it harder to afford nutritious meals, and prices have spiked further since.

HUNGER

One-tenth of the world is hungry – and war risks worsening the crisis

07-07-2022 08:42 Number of undernourished people rose by about 6% to roughly 768 million last year, an annual report by United Nations agencies shows.

Domestic Trade Secretary Guillermo Hang is set to leave the government.

BATAKIS' TEAM TAKING SHAPE?

Trade secretary dumped with Scioli and La Cámpora defining Batakis’ team

07-07-2022 01:24 Guillermo Hang leaves post after just over six weeks in role; New economy minister’s team begins to take shape.

NEW ECONOMY MINISTER

Inflation, export duties and IMF: Silvina Batakis’ economic definitions

06-07-2022 23:00 Martín Guzmán’s successor considers that the escalation of prices is a multi-causal phenomenon and defends strong state regulation of the economy. For her, “wages must run ahead of inflation.”

President Alberto Fernández greets Economy Minister Silvina Batakis after she took the oath of office at the Casa Rosada in Buenos Aires on July 4, 2022.

BLOOMBERG - ANALYSIS

Argentina's subsidy cuts mired in doubt under new minister

06-07-2022 22:14 Several analysts insist that a question mark hangs over Silvina Batakis’ commitment to spending cuts penned by Martín Guzmán and the IMF.

Joseph Stiglitz, economics professor at Columbia University and Nobel laureate, pictured in 2020.

CABINET CHANGE

Stiglitz: Frente de Todos divisions made Guzmán’s work impossible

06-07-2022 16:34 Economist and 2001 Nobel Prize for Economics winner Joseph Stiglitz blames coalition tensions for Martín Guzmán's departure from office.

PROFILE: SILVINA BATAKIS

‘Silvina the Greek’: minister with political profile becomes consensus pick

06-07-2022 16:12 With a political profile located on the left wing of the ruling coalition, economist Silvina Batakis emerged as the consensus figure to lead the Economy Ministry.

FINANCIAL TURBULENCE

Argentina's bonds, currency plunge on Batakis' first day in office

05-07-2022 17:04 Argentina’s global bonds fell the most since they were issued nearly two years ago as Silvina Batakis assumes office.

ndigenous people and members of social organizations gather in Quito on June 30, 2022, in the framework of indigenous-led protests against high living costs. The Ecuadoran government said late on June 29 it would restart talks with indigenous-led protesters, mediated by the Catholic Church, as a fresh state of emergency was issued more than two weeks into disruptive and often violent daily rallies against rising living costs.

Latin America

Indigenous protests cost Ecuador US$1 billion, central bank says

05-07-2022 10:00 Days of protests over the cost of living by indigenous Ecuadoreans could cost the country at least US$1 billion, claims nation's central bank.

NEW MINISTER SWORN-IN

Batakis sends message to markets as she’s sworn-in as economy minister

04-07-2022 22:17 Argentina’s new economy minister Silvina Batakis says she believes in “fiscal balance” and says Argentina needs “more exports” and to “revalue our currency.” Vowing to talk to the IMF soon, she says that the government's segmentation plan to alter subsidies for public utilities will continue.

President Alberto Fernández and new Economy Minister Silvina Batakis.

Bloomberg

Batakis takes reins of Argentina’s economy as markets tumble

04-07-2022 21:34 Silvina Batakis declares that she "believes in fiscal balance" as she is sworn-in as economy minister.

The helicopter transporting President Alberto Fernández arrives at the Casa Rosada in Buenos Aires on July 4, 2022.

Economic crisis

Markets react negatively to change of economy minister

04-07-2022 17:30 The peso depreciated sharply against the dollar in the informal market on Monday as investors reacted to the appointment of Silvina Batakis as economy minister.

Demonstrators wave flags outside the National Congress building during a protest against the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreement as lawmakers vote on the bill in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Thursday, March 17, 2022.

BLOOMBERG

Analysts: Argentina's IMF deal at risk with new economy minister

04-07-2022 15:08 Analysts say Argentina's US$44-billion programme with the International Monetary Fund may be in jeopardy after President Alberto Fernández chose leftist economist Silvina Batakis as the country's new economy minister.

“Today we have a very high exchange rate gap´´, said Guzmán.

BLOOMBERG

Argentina’s black market peso sinks on economy minister shake-up

04-07-2022 14:16 Argentina’s black market exchange rate tumbled on Monday after left-leaning economist Silvina Batakis was appointed as the new economy minister.

Handout file picture taken on February 2012 and released by Télam news agency showing Silvina Batakis, who was appointed Economy Minister on July 3, 2022.

New minister named

Fernández and CFK chose Silvina Batakis as Argentina's new economy minister

03-07-2022 22:55 After lengthy negotiations at the Olivos presidential residence, President Alberto Fernández appoints Silvina Batakis to replace Martín Guzmán, who resigned amid a crisis in the ruling Frente de Todos coalition.

POLITICS & ECONOMY

Fernández taps Batakis as economy minister to tackle crisis

03-07-2022 22:38 President Alberto Fernández taps Silvina Batakis as the country’s new economy minister to replace Martīn Guzmán, who resigned his post a day earlier.

Tensions on the rise in the ruling Frente de Todos coalition.

ANALYSIS

Cristina achieves her goal: sacking Alberto's economic team

03-07-2022 09:41 In recent weeks, the pressure bearing down on Martín Guzmán had intensified – both from the markets and from the Kirchnerite wing of the government.

MARKETS

Argentines seek hedging in crypto after minister resigns

02-07-2022 22:59 Moves on crypto markets could indicate unease over the growing rift within the ruling coalition and concern over the government’s ability to tackle rising inflation and other economic challenges.

President Alberto Fernández and Economy Minister Martín Guzmán unveil a new regime for energy companies designed to boost investment and generate foreign currency at the Bicentennial Museum in Buenos Aires.

ANALYSIS

Guzmán resigns as coalition divisions grow

02-07-2022 22:55 Shake-up raises doubts over whether Argentina can comply with a US$44-billion IMF programme, whose goals and objectives for the second half are seen by private economists view as too challenging to reach.

PROFILE

Martín Guzmán: the debt negotiator who fell with Argentina's economy

02-07-2022 22:48 A leading disciple of Nobel Prize-winning economics laureate Joseph Stiglitz, 39-year-old Martín Guzmán lacked experience in government when he joined President Alberto Fernández's Cabinet in December 2019.

POLITICS & ECONOMY

Economy Minister Martín Guzmán resigns from government

02-07-2022 22:37 Official posts lengthy resignation letter addressed to President Alberto Fernández on social networks; Announcement came as Vice-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner was giving speech in Ensenada.

EDITORIAL

Muddling and meddling in the middle of the year

02-07-2022 07:00 If 1974 saw the death of the founder of the Peronist movement 48 years ago yesterday, the current head is looking hardly more alive politically – and far more nominal in his authority.

Currency crisis

The fateful 30th month of the Fernández-Fernández administration

02-07-2022 07:00 President Alberto Fernández has been hit by a crippling run on the peso that has stretched out over several weeks during the 30th month of his Presidency, as an exhausted economic model has failed to generate confidence and Central Bank reserves.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

THE WEEK IN REVIEW

Stories that caught our eye: June 26 to July 1

02-07-2022 00:01 A selection of the stories that caught our eye over the last week in Argentina.

The cloud of greenhouse gas had the same short-term warming impact as the annual emissions from about 12,000 US cars.

ENVIRONMENT

Gas supplier TGN defends massive methane releases in Argentina

01-07-2022 16:35 Transportadora de Gas del Norte defends intentional release of methane directly into the atmosphere during planned pipeline work.

BLOOMBERG

Central Bank asked exporters to help bolster reserves

01-07-2022 15:50 Central Bank asks crop exporters to sell more dollars than they were planning this month so that the country’s reserve level will rise to meet an upcoming target for its US$44-billion programme with the International Monetary Fund.

US Ambassador to Argentina Marc R. Stanley.

Exclusive interview

US Ambassador Marc Stanley: ‘I see a once in a generation opportunity for Argentina'

01-07-2022 14:30 Joe Biden’s envoy in Buenos Aires discusses his approach to diplomacy, bilateral relations and President Fernández's upcoming trip to Washington.

by James Grainger