INTERVIEW / PERIODISMO PURO Hernán Lacunza: 'The healthy antidote for avoiding capital flight is confidence' 03-06-2022 10:27 Former economy minister Hernán Lacunza on the IMF debt agreement, eyeing short-term fetishes instead of solutions and capital flight. by Jorge Fontevecchia
And that reminds me… Not getting the hang of it 28-05-2022 01:00 The Kirchnerite wing of the Frente de Todos coalition has come to the final conclusion that the “war on inflation” is irreversibly lost, leading to a refusal to have any official of its kidney attached to that failure. by Michael Soltys
BLOOMBERG Hunt for lithium sparks frantic rush into Argentina's mountains 24-05-2022 13:20 Looming shortage of lithium, key for electric vehicles, gives Argentina a chance to become a mining mecca.
BLOOMBERG - ANALYSIS Price control chief quits in latest sign of infighting 24-05-2022 09:41 Resignation of Domestic Trade Secretary Roberto Feletti is the latest sign of infighting over the government’s economic strategy as annual inflation approaches 60 percent.
BLOOMBERG As rivals turn screws on mining, Argentina puts out welcome mat 11-05-2022 23:35 Government turns to capital-control loopholes and tax breaks, eyeing export boost as neighbours look to raise mine taxes.
TECH & TAX Argentina's tech industry earning billions of dollars off the books 22-04-2022 16:30 Billions of dollars in Argentine technology exports are going unreported as companies and freelance workers skirt currency controls, according to an industry group.
IMF DEBT TALKS Guzmán, Feletti spoke to IMF staff on price controls 14-01-2022 21:06 Economy Minister Martín Guzmán and Internal Trade Secretary Roberto Feletti spoke with IMF staff on Friday about the latest phase of the government's price control programme.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS Inflation slowed to 2.5% in November, reveals INDEC 14-12-2021 22:56 Price increases slowed from previous month yet have risen 45.4% since January and by 51.2% over the last year, according to official data.
NEW CENTRAL BANK RESTRICTIONS Kulfas defends new rules: ‘Middle class has many options for the summer’ 28-11-2021 09:08 Productive Development Minister Matías Kulfas becomes the latest government minister to take to the airwaves to defend new Central Bank rules on credit card purchases in dollars.
EXCHANGE CONTROLS Argentina tightens exchange controls to curb outflows of dollars 26-11-2021 03:06 Argentina’s Central Bank publishes two new measures intended to curb access to hard currency amid expectations for a devaluation.
FINANCIAL TURBULENCE Currency turbulence continues: Blue dollar closes at 199 05-11-2021 18:26 In the last three weeks, the 'blue' dollar has soared 15 pesos, widening the gap over the official exchange rate and adding to inflationary pressures.
90-day freeze AmCham warns government that price controls are 'time bomb' 26-10-2021 14:08 US companies warn in an emailed statement issued via American Chamber of Commerce in Argentina that “price freezes do not solve the problem" of runaway inflation, rather "they transform it into a time bomb that will explode sooner or later.”
BATTLE AGAINST INFLATION Argentina freezes prices on over 1,400 goods ahead of elections 20-10-2021 10:11 The government is freezing prices on 1,432 household items in an effort to cool accelerating inflation ahead of November’s midterm election.
AND THAT REMINDS ME… Price controls without IDEA(s) 16-10-2021 00:01 The holes in price controls are an all too familiar story in Argentina. All sorts of routes for bypassing them, but the ultimate problem confounding price controls is that even their success against all the odds also contains the seeds of failure. by Michael Soltys
NEW PRICE CONTROLS Government agrees 90-day price freeze for more than 1,200 products 14-10-2021 17:12 Government reaches agreement with retailers and business leaders to freeze prices of more than 1,200 household goods for 90 days – latest attempt to win back voters and tackle runaway inflation.
BLOOMBERG In home of Malbec, eyes turn toward idled US$5-billion potash mine 09-09-2021 14:52 Mendoza Province in talks with some of world’s top producers of potash to revive Río Colorado mine.
BLOOMBERG Cuba lays groundwork to legalise cryptocurrency transactions 30-08-2021 10:43 Communist government is trying to legalise and regulate the growing use of cryptocurrencies on the island as citizens ramp up transactions to evade state controls.
BLOOMBERG Argentina tightens capital controls ahead of midterm elections 13-08-2021 14:11 Regulators tighten screws on so-called blue-chip operations, where investors buy assets in pesos and sell them abroad in dollars to obtain foreign currency.
BLOOMBERG Debt rollover flops as investors eye midterms 04-08-2021 20:47 Investors sent a warning message to Argentina’s Treasury on Tuesday night – don’t expect us to finance the government’s increased spending ahead of November’s midterm elections unless interest rates go up.
BLOOMBERG Central Bank sells dollars for first time since April 03-08-2021 14:53 Central Bank sells greenbacks for the first time in three months, amid electoral nervousness and high inflation.
'FREEDOM DAY' IN ENGLAND England lifts Covid curbs as scientists warn of surge in cases 19-07-2021 11:21 British government lifts pandemic restrictions on daily life in England, scrapping all social distancing rules in a step slammed by scientists and opposition parties as a dangerous leap into the unknown.
Bloomberg Argentina spawns another FX rate as government clamps down 15-07-2021 14:49 Government steps to regain control over Argentina’s chaotic currency market has led a new unofficial exchange rate to rise to prominence.
Bloomberg Yields topping 14% lure investors to world’s best utility bond 14-07-2021 10:14 The world’s best performing utility bonds come from an unlikely corner of emerging markets – Argentina.
Bloomberg Argentina loses emerging market status on FX controls 25-06-2021 01:55 Argentine stocks were cut from emerging market status by index provider MSCI Inc on the country’s continued capital controls.
Bloomberg Crypto mining booms on cheap, subsidised energy in Argentina 31-05-2021 10:41 Bitcoin miners are capitalising on the inefficiencies of the country’s interventionist economy to reap outsize returns, fuelled by memories of currency busts and powered by government-subsidised electricity.
POVERTY & THE PANDEMIC Government extends food aid to four million kids under 14 09-05-2021 09:20 President Alberto Fernández says government will extend Tarjeta Alimentar food card scheme to four million children aged under 14, with poverty on rise among youngsters.
Bloomberg Government's plan to stabilise rents sends prices skyrocketing in BA 16-04-2021 10:58 Landlords in Buenos Aires have raised the rent on apartments more than 60% ahead of a new law that gives the government control over price increases.
BLOOMBERG Argentina’s peso mess is delivering windfall profits to brokers 14-04-2021 15:12 In Argentina, financial markets are all but dead. From stocks to bonds to traditional foreign-exchange venues, trading volumes are razor thin. Except, that is, in one unusual corner.
BLOOMBERG - ANALYSIS Argentina resorts to unorthodox tools to fight 40% inflation 17-03-2021 13:24 Argentina is once again turning to a combination of unconventional policy tools to curb inflation, which is expected to near 40 percent this year.
EDITORIAL Menem: A man of his times – and ours 20-02-2021 06:08 Despite his passing, Carlos Menem’s spirit remains very much around, in both the current government and the country as a whole.
PRICE CONTROLS Government to investigate food companies amid price clampdown 17-02-2021 14:28 Production & Development Ministry plans to investigate several food companies for not “increasing production to its highest level of installed capacity” and ensuring proper delivery.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS INDEC reveals inflation reached 36.1% in 2020 14-01-2021 19:44 Argentina registered cumulative inflation of 36.1% in 2020, with product prices rising fast in the final months of the year.
BLOOMBERG Argentina gives Templeton, Pimco chance to trim peso holdings 09-11-2020 18:04 Argentina is giving some of its largest bondholders the chance to trim their holdings in one of the world’s worst-performing currencies, offering to swap their local peso securities for dollar-denominated assets.
FINANCIAL TURMOIL Economy Ministry to halt Central Bank advances until end of 2020 03-11-2020 12:53 Economy Ministry says it will not ask the Central Bank for temporary advances of cash in November and December and would target local capital markets for financing instead.
IN FOCUS Economy Ministry takes steps to relieve pressure on currency markets 21-10-2020 18:59 Economy Ministry unveils new measures designed to reduce the pressures on volatile currency markets and ward off devaluation.
BUSINESS Currency controls hit private companies in Argentina 10-10-2020 10:11 Capital controls were already a headache for private companies, but more drastic measures obliging firms to restructure their debts has delivered an even harder blow.
Bloomberg Government to devalue peso faster while it fights reserves drop 01-10-2020 23:09 The Central Bank will end a policy of “uniform devaluation” and allow greater volatility, according to a statement sent by the institution led by Miguel Pesce after hours Thursday.
BLOOMBERG – ANALYSIS Rout in billionaire family's bonds shows no-one trusts Argentina 25-09-2020 11:55 For all of Argentina’s assurances that a round of capital controls announced last week are only temporary, investors are making the opposite bet – and the evidence is there for all to see.
Bloomberg Argentina yield curve inverts as forex controls spook investors 23-09-2020 16:36 Less than a month after Argentina’s US$65-billion debt restructuring, bond prices show growing concern the government may struggle to pay its obligations.
BLOOMBERG Argentines are finding it almost impossible to purchase dollars 21-09-2020 19:28 Savers are finding it impossible to buy dollars through official channels as banks struggle to adjust to rule changes that tightened restrictions.
BLOOMBERG Argentina’s new bonds plunge deep into distressed territory 21-09-2020 17:11 Argentina’s new dollar bonds have plunged back into distressed territory just two weeks after the nation restructured almost US$65 billion in debt.
Bloomberg Pesce, Guzmán split over curbs on dollar purchases 17-09-2020 16:19 Argentina's economic team split on latest crackdown, as well as how long new rules should remain in place.
BLOOMBERG YPF leads Argentina corporate bond rout on new forex limits 16-09-2020 23:27 Corporate bonds from Argentina posted their biggest decline in six months on Wednesday as a new round of capital controls and government restrictions on access to dollars threatened to provoke a wave of defaults.
Bloomberg Argentina bonds fall with tighter foreign-exchange controls 16-09-2020 23:23 Argentine bonds fell Wednesday after the government expanded restrictions on foreign exchange in an attempt to hold onto US dollars as reserves dwindle.
CURRENCY CONTROLS Central Bank tightens currency controls as peso weakens 16-09-2020 10:29 Central Bank tightens conditions for the purchase of foreign currency, to prevent hoarding, preserve reserves and discourage demand for US dollars.
Currency controls Fernández hints at changes to US$200 greenback purchase quota 16-08-2020 08:01 Peronist leader says Argentina is facing high demand "from small savers," with knock-on effect for country reserves. Central Bank officials, however, say no changes are planned.
SECURITY & CRIME Bullrich, Berni express support for ‘vigilante justice’ pensioner who killed his attacker 25-07-2020 09:53 Politicians express support for 71-year-old Quilmes retiree Jorge Adolfo Ríos, as crime and security returns to forefront of political agenda.
capital controls Banks block accounts of those suspected of trying to circumvent dollar quota 17-07-2020 00:11 At least three of country's biggest banks have started to block dollar purchases via online platforms for clients suspected of using loopholes to purchase greenbacks beyond the US$200 limit.
GLOBAL PANDEMIC Covid-19 hits close to home for Latin America’s political elite 11-07-2020 08:46 Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro, Bolivian interim leader Jeanine Áñez and Venezuela’s effective number two, Diosdado Cabello all test positive for coronavirus within days of each other.
CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC Catamarca records its first case of coronavirus 04-07-2020 08:45 Governor Raúl Jalil says individual had travelled from Buenos Aires City to the northwestern province and was successfully isolated before entering the region. Until Friday, Catamarca was the only region not to have registered a case.