News of ministry

Guzmán, Pesce, Massa in isolation after IMF officials gets Covid-19

15-11-2020 20:55 A number of government officials – including Martín Guzmán, Miguel Pesce and Sergio Massa – went into preventative isolation on Sunday, after a member of a visiting IMF mission tested positive for Covid-19.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Government ramps up plans for massive vaccination programme

14-11-2020 08:33 Government wants to vaccinate 11 million against Covid-19 next year, with three frontrunners most likely to arrive on market first.

Bloomberg

Argentina goes all-in to cut record gap with parallel peso

12-11-2020 16:42 Argentina is resorting to all necessary means to reduce the gap between its official and parallel exchange rates.

CABINET CHANGE

María Eugenia Bielsa out as housing minister, Ferraresi to replace her

12-11-2020 00:22 The first Cabinet change in 11 months of the Alberto Fernández presidency materialised Wednesday with the resignation of Housing Minister María Eugenia Bielsa, following several days of rumours.

BLOOMBERG

Argentina turns to orthodox policy signals to ease dollar craze

06-11-2020 09:12 After tightening capital controls several times, Argentina's government has surprised investors by altering its tack in what appears to be an incipient effort to restore confidence.

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.

BLOOMBERG

Government mulling incentives for job growth, says Labour minister

27-10-2020 13:16 Argentina is considering fiscal incentives to encourage companies to hire workers after unemployment spiked to the highest in at least 16 years amid the pandemic, says Labour Minister Claudio Moroni.

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.

BLOOMBERG

Argentina bond rout blows up the template for debt restructuring

19-10-2020 20:40 Investors are giving up on Argentina, just six weeks after the government pulled off a US$65-billion restructuring.

BLOOMBERG

Argentina’s currency woes show no sign of easing

10-10-2020 08:31 Argentina’s hodge podge exchange rate regime is running out of steam.

MERCOSUR

Felipe Solá: Argentina won’t stop or reject EU-Mercosur trade deal

01-10-2020 19:59 Foreign minister says country has “changed stance” on free-trade agreement and will debate it in Congress when concerns over environmental

by Fermin Koop

Bloomberg

Government mulls temporary cut on some crop export taxes

29-09-2020 17:16 Government weighing temporary reduction on some export taxes to boost dollar inflows, Bloomberg reports.

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.

ECONOMIC POLICY

Central Bank optimistic over post-bond swap future

25-08-2020 19:20 Central Bank Governor Miguel Ángel Pesce says closure of the debt swap deal would relieve pressures on exchange markets and improve economic expectations.

DIPLOMACY

Argentina: ‘Electoral route is only way' to resolve crisis in Venezuela

17-08-2020 18:51 Government distances itself from statement from more than 30 groups calling for free general elections in order to establish transitional government.

FOOTBALL & CORONAVIRUS

Football clubs granted permission to restart training by government

06-08-2020 14:50 Health Ministry confirms safety protocols for returning of football training, with clubs due to play in Copa Libertadores set to restart first.

BLOOMBERG - OPINION

Mohamed A. El-Erian: Argentina's debt proposal deserves support

07-07-2020 01:35 It would be in neither side's long-term interest to allow the theoretical best to be the enemy of the attainable good – what is now on the table warrants support by both Argentina and its creditors.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

Argentina records highest number of Covid-19 fatalities in single day

04-07-2020 08:14 Health Ministry officials confirm deaths of 52 individuals – Argentina’s highest daily toll to date. With 2,845 people having tested positive over the last 24 hours, infections are continuing to accelerate.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

INDEC: Economy contracted by 5.4% in first quarter of 2020

23-06-2020 20:37 Unemployment rose to 10.4% in the first three months of the year, before the coronavirus lockdown kicked in, national statistics bureau reveals.

EXPROPRIATION OF VICENTIN

Vicentin’s expropriation and how to break bad news

20-06-2020 09:26 A Peronist expropriation, and maybe even nationalisation, sounds like the best way to burn a lot of money straight into inefficient bureaucracy and corruption.

by Agustino Fontevecchia

Coronavirus Pandemic

Officials debate future of quarantine, likely to limit public transport

15-06-2020 16:10 National, Buenos Aires City and provincial health ministers meet to debate future of quarantine and preventative steps to tackle Covid-19, as officials in Chaco announce return to stricter lockdown in province.

BLOOMBERG

Argentina would ease currency controls if debt talks are successful

29-05-2020 14:56 Central Bank leaders implemented new controls Thursday night, restricting companies’ access to the foreign exchange market to pay for obligations overseas in dollars or other currencies.

MINISTRY POSITIONS

Production in a context of reduction

02-05-2020 10:58 Although always working with centre-left administrations, Kulfas has no political militancy or factional loyalty with his presence in the Cabinet entirely due to his personal links to President Fernández, as a leading member of his Grupo Callao think tank.

by Michael Soltys

Investigation in Brazil

Bolsonaro names allies to head police, justice ministry in Brazil

28-04-2020 11:50 But in blow to far-right leader, Supreme Court of Brazil authorises investigation of allegations of illegal interference of the police agency by the outgoing justice minister.

CORONAVIRUS QUARANTINE

Nationwide lockdown: Limited resumption of activities starting Monday

18-04-2020 09:10 Government to allow select activities in provinces without ‘viral circulation,’ confirms Cabinet Chief Santiago Cafiero; BA Province Governor Kicillof tests negative for coronavirus.

Sex and coronavirus

Health Ministry expert recommends 'virtual sex' for locked-up lovers

17-04-2020 16:59 Things got spicy at the daily Health Ministry briefing on Friday, as Dr José Barletta told citizens not to have shag strangers during the shutdown and to wash their hands thoroughly after a little sexy time at home.

MINISTRY POSITIONS

Social policy collides with scandal

11-04-2020 10:42 Born in the Greater Buenos Aires district of Morón, Social Development Minister Daniel Fernando Arroyo has made social policy his exclusive focus since starting his university studies (UBA) more than three decades ago.

by Michael Soltys

CORRUPTION & THE COURTS

Ex-VP Boudou, jailed for corruption offences, granted house arrest

07-04-2020 18:44 Court granted house arrest to Boudou, who was vice-president during the second presidential term of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner from 2011 to 2015.

Food-purchase scandal

Government under fire for overpaying on food purchases

07-04-2020 17:12 Social Development Minister Daniel Arroyo asks official responsible for overpaying for foodstuffs to resign, amid fierce criticism from opposition.

Coronavirus pandemic

Government postpones local debt payments due in dollars until end of year

06-04-2020 09:23 The government has issued a decree to defer close to US$9.8 billion in local dollar-denominated debt payments until 2021.

MINISTRY POSITIONS

Science joins global hunt for vaccine

28-03-2020 10:48 The Science, Technology and Productive Innovation Ministry was created on the very first day of the Cristina Fernández de Kirchner presidency in 2007. In the ensuing eight years of that controversial regime, it is difficult to find any initiative of hers which commanded approval across so wide a spectrum.

by Michael Soltys

Coronavirus pandemic

Virus death toll rises to six with fatalities in Mar del Plata, Chaco

24-03-2020 15:19 71-year-old, who returned to country from Spain on March 9, dies in Mar del Plata; Chaco records second death from Covid-19 after 53-year-old passes away in Resistencia.

Coronavirus outbreak

Schools will remain open 'for the moment,' says education minister

13-03-2020 12:38 As the government introduces emergency measures to tackle the coronavirus pandemic, Nicolás Trotta confirmed today that schools will remain open – for now.

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.

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.

CORRUPTION & THE COURTS

Court orders ex-planning minister Julio de Vido's release

05-03-2020 14:11 Court orders veteran Veteran Kirchnerite official and ex-federal planning minister's release, saying he has been "detained for a period longer than the maximum legal term of two years."

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

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.

MINISTRY POSITIONS

Education, pay talks and class struggle

29-02-2020 11:28 The prospect of classes starting almost everywhere this Monday and last Wednesday’s return of national collective bargaining to the chronic problem of teacher pay for the first time since 2017 are ample reason to make education the choice for today’s “Ministry Positions” column.

by Michael Soltys

MINISTRY POSITIONS

Veteran moved back to Defence

23-02-2020 15:38 Agustín Rossi has returned to the Defence Ministry he previously headed between 2013 and 2015. This familiarity with the post might seem reason enough for the appointment within a Cabinet where such experience is in relatively short supply – but the real aim of this move might well have been to ease him out of a position where he has far more years under his belt...

by Michael Soltys

CORRUPTION & THE COURTS

Fernández revokes Macri decree creating witness protection agency

20-02-2020 16:51 DNU, issued in final days of Macri's time in office, would have seen responsibilities for witness protection taken away from Justice Ministry in favour of a specialist, autonomous agency.

RATE CUT

Central Bank lowers key rate to 40%, extending cuts

19-02-2020 18:15 Central Bank chief Miguel Pesce justifies the rate cuts as a tool to help turn around Argentina’s economy, which is expected to contract for the third straight year in 2020.

MINISTRY POSITIONS

Public works, private pockets...

01-02-2020 09:23 The revival of a Public Works Ministry after almost three decades suggest a direct defiance of the accumulation of court corruption cases during the Macri years.

by Michael Soltys

RATE CUT

Central Bank cuts key interest rate for fifth time since December 10

30-01-2020 21:29 Rate floor cut to 48 percent on Thursday from 50 percent. Central bank chief Miguel Pesce has lowered it from 63 percent since taking office December 10.

MINISTRY POSITIONS

The politics of security

25-01-2020 11:28 Curiously enough, ever since the ministry’s birth in late 2010, Argentina’s “top cop” has always been a woman apart from six months.

by Michael Soltys

First Foreign Trip

Symbolic and strategic: Fernández picks Israel for first foreign trip

17-01-2020 00:12 President’s decision to visit Jerusalem next week welcomed by Jewish community in Buenos Aires.

by Joseph Charney

FERNÁNDEZ'S FIRST MONTH

Fernández walks tightrope as he celebrates first month in office

09-01-2020 20:00 A month into his presidency, Peronist leader has embarked on an ambitious and risky juggling act in a bid to drag Argentina out of its worst economic crisis in almost 20 years.

Envoy in Buenos Aires

Foreign Ministry withdraws 'special' status of Guaidó's envoy in Argentina

07-01-2020 16:10 Government officials retract "special mission" status granted to Elisa Trotta Gamus, who was feted by former president Mauricio Macri as opposition leader's ambassador in Buenos Aires.