News of opinion

Portland's Wall of Moms builds on a long protest tradition

13-08-2020 00:38 Kelsy Kretschmer, associate professor of sociology at Oregon State University, explains why the Wall of Moms protest group attracted so much attention in the coverage of the Black Lives Matter protests in Portland, and how the group draws on a long tradition of mothers’ movements around the world.

For Argentina, reaching a debt deal was the easy part

10-08-2020 15:50 Many analysts foresee the IMF agreeing to reschedule the loan to its biggest debtor. Nonetheless, the Fund’s imprimatur will come with conditions.

by Mac Margolis

Covid-19: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

08-05-2020 16:06 In the depths of quarantine tedium, this writer unearthed two movies whose titles have an uncanny pertinence in these surreal times. 

by Thomas Manning

Helicopter money won’t ease Latin America’s pandemic pain

08-05-2020 09:25 Along with Covid-19, a fever of wonkery has broken out over how to reverse the collective economic contraction and to carry on once the health emergency has passed. As the worst of the pandemic is yet to come.

by Mac Margolis

Face mask days

18-04-2020 10:47 Argentina’s coronavirus quarantine has been extended until April 26 and the use of facemasks is now compulsory in many parts of the country, including Buenos Aires City.

by Martín Gambarotta

Labour’s love not lost, but whither jobs?

18-04-2020 10:41 The mission impossible of defending employment against the pandemic will make the Labour, Employment and Social Security Ministry a hot seat in the months and years to come.

by Michael Soltys

A long-haul plight

11-04-2020 10:28 Is anybody paying attention to Argentina’s debt drama with the entire world economy hurting so badly from a virus?

by Martín Gambarotta

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

Pandemic may give traditional media a new lease of life

30-03-2020 19:54 The coronavirus pandemic and the need for reliable information has triggered a surge in traditional mainstream media audiences.

When togetherness is anti-social

28-03-2020 11:37 Life and the economy are intertwined. Without money, people starve. In an unpleasantly short time, desperation can breed violent anarchy.

by James Neilson

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

Surveys show strong support for Fernández's handling of virus crisis

27-03-2020 15:26 Although economic concerns run high among the Argentine population, polling suggests most Argentines approve of Peronist leader's measures to mitigate the harms of Covid-19.

by Jennifer Heiman

Morales protégé, Luis Arce, leads in polls head of Bolivian election

16-03-2020 22:32 The candidate of ex-president Evo Morales' MAS party, Luis Arce, has a commanding lead in opinion polls ahead of the May 3 presidential election in Bolivia

The oil shock of 2020 appears to be here – and the pain could be wide and deep

16-03-2020 10:53 The world is again undergoing an oil shock. This is a big deal, not only for the global economy, but for geopolitics, the future of transport and efforts to mitigate climate change.

Guzmán’s long March

29-02-2020 08:56 Argentina’s president is trying to sort out the country’s debt problems politically. Still, in the end, it will all be about money – the success of the ‘gently does it’ approach hinges on the bondholders accepting a considerable haircut.

by Martín Gambarotta

Political unprisoners

23-02-2020 16:53 The notion that some people are entitled to remain above the law is shared, or regarded as unimportant, by such a large proportion of the electorate that disabusing it seems well-nigh impossible.

by James Neilson

IMF, Argentina re-engage in crucial test of resolve

22-02-2020 10:19 Here are seven things to know at the beginning of what is likely to be a protracted, loud and knotty process.

Argentina’s government needs to speak with one voice on debt

21-02-2020 08:38 Before Argentina can come up with a solid economic plan, it needs a credible political pact. That takes a government which speaks with one voice, mutes the palace incendiaries and treats debt and economic recovery not as a passion play but as part of a national business plan. 

by Mac Margolis

China at war with the coronavirus

08-02-2020 12:43 If winning prestige in other quarters was what the people in Peking were after, they are likely to remain disappointed.

by James Neilson

All is not quiet on the debt restructuring front

08-02-2020 10:15 Debt is Argentina’s disease. President Alberto Fernández, a Peronist, has said that the nation is now in “intensive care” treatment for its debt addiction. The president has also likened trying to restructure Argentina’s mammoth debt to playing poker with the good fellas. You try pulling a convincing poker face while in intensive care without your cards falling to the ground.

by Martín Gambarotta