News of debt crisis

What we learned this week: April 3rd- April 10th

10-04-2021 09:22 The stories that caught our eye over the last seven days in Argentina.

On ‘the fear’ and philosopher kings

03-04-2021 08:17 When polarisation and emotional entrenchment reaches the level of a football rivalry, the democratic system begins to fail.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

A country caught in a time warp

27-03-2021 07:57 Obsessed as they are by the world of almost half a century ago, Cristina and her admirers have little interest in the country they are now governing.

by James Neilson

'We can't pay' – CFK puts US$45-billion IMF debt talks into doubt

27-03-2021 07:21 With Economy Minister Martín Guzmán in Washington for meetings with IMF staff members, Vice-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner makes explosive intervention into restructuring talks.

More of the same?

13-03-2021 05:48 The kick-off of the October electoral campaign promises to be brutal for future expectations. Government and opposition will duke it out once again, using all of the usual dirty tricks.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Fernández conditions IMF talks with lines from Instituto Patria

06-03-2021 09:15 Argentina’s Peronist leader has delivered the International Monetary Fund a clear message, echoing the lines of a Kirchnerite think-tank and modifying Economy Minister Martín Guzmán’s plans to seal a debt restructuring deal by May.

Guzmán: ‘Austerity is not the way to go’

13-02-2021 09:01 At a talk hosted by Brown University, Argentina’s economy minister says the nation has a “thin corridor through which the economy has to transit,” as speculation grows over debt talks with the International Monetary Fund.

by Jonah Shrock

Not so much how to win as when?

06-02-2021 10:32 The current combination of capital controls, price freezes, overpriced bonds, etc. might suffice for the next eight months without bursting, but not for a further two years.

Biden’s three priorities for South America

23-01-2021 08:39 Newly inaugurated US president’s foreign policy will have three main fronts in South America: environmental protection, the crisis in Venezuela and countering the growing influence of China. Negotiations with the International Monetary Fund will be the first bilateral test for Alberto Fernández.

by Leandro Dario

Don’t expect ‘carnal relations’ between Alberto and Joe Biden

23-01-2021 08:31 One actor could tilt the scales, though: Pope Francis. Biden is the second Catholic president of the US, preceded by John F. Kennedy. How much will the Peronist leader of the Holy See nudge Biden our way?

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Should he stay or should he go?

19-12-2020 08:31 The series of reversals of Martín Guzmán’s 2021 policies sends a clear message: austerity will not be tolerated, much less so in an electoral year.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Lengthy Covid lay-off ban backfires, postponing job crisis

12-12-2020 08:53 Companies have been banned from firing workers since March, with the prohibition was recently extended into 2021. But many firms have resorted to suspensions, effectively postponing future job cuts.

Creditors blast Argentina for post-restructuring bond blow-up

22-10-2020 22:22 Argentina Exchange Bondholders group and the Argentina Creditor Committee rip government for mismanaging the economy, saying country is headed for disaster just seven weeks after restructuring US$65 billion in debt.

Fernández rules out devaluation, bank-deposit freeze at IDEA

17-10-2020 10:13 Peronist leader sticks to his guns over government policies, telling business leaders that his government is “convinced that this is the path.”

Creditors overwhelmingly back government’s debt restructuring offer

05-09-2020 10:24 Argentina wins "massive" bondholder support to restructure overseas debt, exchanging 99% of debt held under international law.

Down with development

05-09-2020 09:39 Alberto and the people surrounding him are determined to solve the country’s socioeconomic problems by levelling down, taking as much as they can from the more productive parts of society and giving it to the millions who rely on handouts.

by James Neilson

A crisis of diagnosis

15-08-2020 11:10 Opposition to judicial reform is not enough – it must be accompanied by calls for state reform.

IMF: Argentina has not yet requested new financing programme

15-08-2020 11:00 President Fernández says in interview that he will not allow Fund to impose austerity measures as part of a new financing programme.

What we learned this week: August 1 to August 8

08-08-2020 09:31 Stories that caught our eye over the last seven days in Argentina

Debt deal – more relief than belief

08-08-2020 09:22 The quality of this haircut falling on interest rates way above recent levels rather than capital deserves praise, as does abandonment of the absurd three-year grace period exempting this administration from any payment.