News of economy

DEBT RESTRUCTURING

Debt restructuring talks with creditors delayed, but offer is coming

Yesterday 09:29 Economy Minister Guzmán admits coronavirus pandemic has complicated talks, but says government will deliver an offer “very quickly,” most likely in the coming week.

Argentina & the IMF

IMF to hold remote consultations with Argentina amid coronavirus pandemic

03-04-2020 11:21 The government announced this week that it intends to seek a new IMF programme that will allow the existing one to be refinanced until the country can tap debt markets again. The IMF’s normal yearly check-up, an Article IV review, will now likely take place remotely.

Fight against virus

Crisis lending surges as government obliges banks to assist

02-04-2020 16:47 Credit lending is making a comeback in Argentina as the country seeks to flood its streets with pesos to mitigate the effects of the coronavirus.

Bloomberg

Government to press on with debt talks amid virus delays, says Guzmán

01-04-2020 08:33 The government is continuing negotiations with bondholders this week and next, and looking to present an offer at some point after that, Economy Minister Martín Guzmán tells reporters.

Venezuela in crisis

US outlines plan for Venezuela transition, sanctions relief

31-03-2020 17:12 Trump administration leaves Guaidó in limbo, as it indicates Washington is prepared to lift sanctions in support of a new transitional government – but only if both Maduro and opposition leader step aside.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Economy fell by 1.8% year-on-year in January prior to pandemic

31-03-2020 15:15 INDEC's estimate of economy activity shows that GDP has registered year-on-year drops in 19 of the last 21 months.

Coronavirus pandemic

President Fernández extends mandatory quarantine period until April 12

29-03-2020 22:55 Alberto Fernández praises citizens for complying with shutdown, announces "preventative and obligatory" quarantine period for all citizens will be extended until midnight on Sunday, April 12.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Argentina in race against time to halt advance of coronavirus

28-03-2020 10:07 Argentina, with one of the most robust health systems in Latin America, is racing against time to boost its capacity to respond to the spread of Covid-19, whose peaks of contagion loom for May.

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Firms will go bankrupt within 30 days of no work, warns business lobby

28-03-2020 08:56 Argentina’s Chamber of Commerce praises government’s handling of coronavirus crisis but warns that paralysis of economic activity will hit companies hard.

Bloomberg

IMF’s new leaders confront biggest test, as global economy reels

26-03-2020 20:22 The International Monetary Fund is facing one of its biggest tests since the body’s creation at the close of World War II, with new leaders charged with keeping the global economy from the abyss.

Coronavirus Pandemic

Half-million infected with virus worldwide as economic toll rises

26-03-2020 17:11 Human toll of lockdowns against the coronavirus mounts as a record-shattering 3.3 million US citizens applied for unemployment benefits in a single week.

Coronavirus pandemic

Coronavirus in Argentina: Worst yet to come, quarantine may be extended

24-03-2020 12:03 Extension of nationwide lockdown is "a possibility" admits President Fernández, as experts warn the number of confirmed cases will double or treble in the coming weeks as testing is decentralised.

Coronavirus pandemic

Pandemic prompts fears for the future from crisis-weary citizens

22-03-2020 16:02 The coronavirus outbreak has paralysed the global economy – and that could not have happened at a worse time for Argentina...

DEBT BURDEN

Argentina will need ‘substantial debt relief,’ says IMF chief

21-03-2020 08:23 Fund blunt in its assessment of country’s economic problems, warning that issues are “even more pressing” amid coronavirus crisis.

Debt restructuring

Argentina pushes forward 311 billion pesos with latest swap

20-03-2020 18:37 Alberto Fernández administration managed to swap a debt of 311 billion pesos, reducing short-term domestic obligations while renegotiating the foreign debt with creditors.

Coronavirus pandemic

Officials confirm 31 new cases of coronavirus, taking total to 128

20-03-2020 12:55 There are now 128 people who have been infected with the new coronavirus in Argentina, of which three have died, according to data from the Health Ministry.

Coronavirus pandemic

President Fernández orders nationwide lockdown in bid to contain virus

20-03-2020 00:15 Alberto Fernández announces "preventative and compulsory" lockdown of Argentina, from midnight tonight until March 31, in bid to stop the spread of coronavirus.

Coronavirus pandemic

Governors to meet President Fernández for talks on 'total quarantine'

19-03-2020 12:32 Reports suggest "total quarantine" being considered by president, who will meet with governors at 5pm at Olivos.

BLOOMBERG - OPINION

Coronavirus reopens fiscal debate for Brazil and Latin America

18-03-2020 15:08 Even if most Latin American countries have yet to manifest the full brunt of the pandemic, economic contagion is already at hand.

by Mac Margolis

Bloomberg

France ready to nationalise as EU heavyweights take charge

17-03-2020 15:48 France is ready to use the ultimate weapon to protect its biggest companies from the market turmoil set in motion by the coronavirus: nationalisation.

Coronavirus pandemic

Fernández vows to clamp down on virus price gouging

17-03-2020 12:04 Peronist president says he will put "AFIP to work against speculators," saying he will not "tolerate rogues taking us for fools."

A WEEK IN ARGENTINA

Argentina’s viral blues

14-03-2020 08:58 The country’s debt drama will now play out as the coronavirus spreads. Still a virus will not change the fact that Argentina is running out of money.

by Martín Gambarotta

CORONAVIRUS CONSEQUENCES

Coronavirus casts another shadow over Argentina’s economy

14-03-2020 08:48 Consultancy firms predict outbreak will deepen economic turmoil in 2020, shaving as much as 0.5% off GDP

by Fermin Koop

Bloomberg

Central Bank to pause run of rate cuts

12-03-2020 22:33 Central Bank plans to keep its policy rate unchanged, as it weighs the impact of sell-off on world markets.

Pandemic Consequences

Dow plummets again as sell-off over the coronavirus deepens

12-03-2020 13:24 Stocks slide, triggering brief, automatic shutdown in trading for the second time this week. Oil also declined, price per barrel plummeting to under US$31.

Coronavirus consequences

Wall Street down more than 5% as stakes rise in coronavirus pandemic

11-03-2020 16:20 As Covid-19 officially became designated as a global pandemic, stocks once again saw a sharp decline, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down another 1,400 points.

Coronavirus outbreak

Facing recession, Europe grasps for ways to limit damage

11-03-2020 09:52 The European Commission, in conjunction with individual efforts from member-nations plans to set up a 25 billion-euro (US$28 billion) investment fund to support the health care system, businesses and labor market measures.

Democracy in Crisis

Venezuelan police fire tear gas at opposition protest

10-03-2020 15:55 Some of the protesters responded by throwing stones at the police, while others fled the scene.

DEBT RESTRUCTURING

Government proposes US$69-billion debt restructuring plan

10-03-2020 08:15 With Decree 250/2020, government confirms proposal to restructure US$69 billion of public debt.

Coronavirus Outbreak

Israel announces two-week quarantine for all overseas arrivals

09-03-2020 15:36 Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, announced Monday that the government will place any person arriving from overseas in quarantine for two-weeks, in order to contain the growing outbreak.

'Black Monday'

Buenos Aires Stock Exchange falls more than 9% on opening

09-03-2020 13:19 Country risk soars to near 15 year high of over 2,700 points, amid coronavirus fears and plummeting oil prices on a global "black Monday."

Coronavirus Consequences

Dow drops 1,500 points as oil price plunge shocks markets

09-03-2020 11:41 With Covid-19 spreading across the globe, the demand for oil plummeted more than 20 percent, sending shockwaves throughout the global economy and threatening a global recession.

Drug Trade

US report: Colombia coca production still at record high

06-03-2020 12:07 The Trump administration has encouraged the Colombian government to ramp-up its efforts of curbing production through arial herbicide spraying.

RATE CUT

Central Bank cuts interest rate to 38%

06-03-2020 08:00 In its statement, the Central Bank’s committee said cooling prices justified the rate cut but that the economy wasn’t in the clear yet.

Venezuela in crisis

Anger as Maduro urges Venezuela's women to have six children

05-03-2020 14:05 Much-criticised president's comments come with his nation gripped by nation-wide food, clothes, and healthcare shortages.

Bloomberg

BlackRock, Pimco fly to Argentina for private talk on debt

04-03-2020 16:58 Some of Argentina’s largest creditors flew to Buenos Aires for talks with Alberto Fernández’s government this week.

Bloomberg

Brazil, Argentina compete Inter-American development bank top job

04-03-2020 16:50 Brazil is pushing for its own candidates to lead the Inter-American development bank, competing with Argentina; a decision will likely come between July and September.

Bloomberg

Creditors offered bond swap ahead of key peso debt payment

04-03-2020 16:04 Argentina offers investors a swap that debt for new bonds maturing in 2019, in a move that could allow the government to avoid increasing money supply.

China & Latin America

China looks to boost investment, strengthen ties with Colombia

04-03-2020 14:57 Beijing is preparing to sign a deal that would strengthen its ties with Colombia, one of its closest Latin American allies, as its companies pour billions into rail projects, mines and other investments.

Democracy in Crisis

16-year-old shot at Guaidó rally as tensions rise in Venezuela

02-03-2020 13:01 Guaidó, who is recognised as the rightful leader of Venezuela by 50 nations, escaped the incident unharmed.

Pandemic Consequences

OECD warns of severe economic hit from virus outbreak

02-03-2020 10:54 Even if pandemic subsides in the coming months, the OECD projects a much lower global output than previously anticipated.

AS I SEE IT

Growth put on the backburner

29-02-2020 11:33 When in opposition, Peronists and others with broadly similar points of view like to pretend that the country is several times richer than the available data would suggest.

by James Neilson

HANDOVER POWER

Lacalle Pou to deliver Uruguay's first conservative government in 15 years

28-02-2020 14:35 The son of former Uruguayan president Luis Alberto Lacalle will take office on Sunday, ending 15 years of rule by the left-leaning Frente Amplio coalition.

Venezuela in Crisis

Venezuela National Assembly authorises Guaidó to use frozen funds

28-02-2020 11:54 Opposition-controlled legislature released the funds so that opposition leader, who is recognised by 50 countries as the troubled nation's interim president, can continue representing the country abroad.

Free Trade

EU believes Argentina and Mercosur will ratify agreement

26-02-2020 15:17 Brussels maintains that the free trade agreement is "very balanced" and will boost the growth of the economy.

DEBT RESTRUCTURING

IMF hails 'productive' meeting with Guzmán, as minister faces creditors

25-02-2020 08:54 Economy minister says Argentina is facing "a critical moment" ahead of meeting with private creditors and bondholders in Washington on Tuesday.

DEBT TALKS

Guzmán flies to United States after meeting US Treasury chief

24-02-2020 15:48 Economy Minister Martín Guzmán held a "productive" meeting with US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin on the sidelines of the G20 summit of finance ministers in Saudi Arabia on Sunday.

Crisis in Venezuela

UN study: 1 of every 3 Venezuelans is facing hunger

24-02-2020 09:33 The study found that a total of 9.3 million people are moderately or severely food insecure, as wages stay stagnant amid unprecedented hyperinflation.

DEBT CRISIS

Beware of the vultures

22-02-2020 10:34 The IMF was acknowledging that the previous terms of the stand-by agreement, signed with the government of Mauricio Macri, under the careful supervision of Nicolás Dujovne, were absolutely fictitious, and that it is willing to give Argentina time to grow rather than focus on austerity.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Argentina's shrank 2.1% in 2019, reports INDEC

21-02-2020 18:00 Argentina's recession-hit economy shrank by 2.1 percent in 2019, the INDEC national statistics bureau announced Friday.