On Sunday morning, Argentines woke up early and rushed to the grocery store, the bakery, the liquor store, the mall, wherever they could go to stock up fast. The night before a political bombshell had dropped: the economy minister, Martín Guzmán, had suddenly resigned. And Argentines, long accustomed to financial chaos, knew the current crisis … Read more
Argentina’s global bonds fell the most since they were issued nearly two years ago after the country named left-leaning policy maker Silvina Batakis as its new economy minister. Sovereign dollar bonds dropped as much as four cents on the dollar, with some notes dipping below 20 cents on the dollar by midday in Buenos Aires. … Read more
Financial turbulence hit Argentina on Tuesday as the US dollar climbed to a record high of 239 per peso on parallel exchange markets. The so-called ‘blue’ dollar was selling for 242 in some provinces nationwide, according to reports, maintaining its rising trend for the third consecutive day. So far, the unofficial rate has risen by … Read more
Argentina closed last year 2021 with a trade volume of US$141.118 billion, its biggest since 2013, and a surplus of US$14.75 billion, 17.7% higher than the previous year, the INDEC statistics bureau reported last Thursday. In the 12 months of 2021, exports totalled US$77.934 billion, 42 percent more than in 2020 and the highest since … Read more
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador on Friday asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a “fair” deal for Argentina as the troubled nation seeks to restructure its multi-billion-dollar debt with the multilateral lender. The government of Alberto Fernández, which took office in December 2019, is negotiating for a new financing programme that will allow … Read more
Argentina sharply reduced its budget deficit in 2021 as President Alberto Fernández tries to cut down on spending amid talks with the International Monetary Fund. The so-called primary deficit, which excludes interest payments, fell to three percent of gross domestic product from 6.5 percent in 2020. The figure, boosted by proceeds from a wealth tax, … Read more
Argentina’s consumer price index accelerated in December by 3.8 percent, lifting the country’s inflation rate for 2021 to 50.9 percent – one of the highest rates in the world. The data, posted by the INDEC national statistics bureau on Thursday, underlines Argentina’s continued struggle to tackle runaway price increases. In 2020 – a year when … Read more
Brazil’s consumer prices rose more than expected last year, dogging the central bank and its efforts to bring inflation back to target. Prices increased 10.06 percent in December from a year ago, above the 9.96 percent median forecast in a Bloomberg survey. They rose 0.73% on the month, the national statistics agency reported on Tuesday. … Read more
Argentina’s currency fell sharply on the parallel market this week, with the blue dollar selling at an all-time high of 207 pesos on Thursday, just days ahead of key legislative elections. However, by Friday – the last business day before tomorrow’s vote – the dolár blue had taken a breather, dropping to 202 pesos. Meanwhile, … Read more
President Alberto Fernández has accused the International Monetary Fund (IMF) of seeking to “impose” a programme of “austerity” on Argentina that would limit future growth. Speaking in an interview with local radio station AM750, the Peronist leader confirmed that his government is still seeking a deal to restructure its US$44-billion debt with the multilateral lender, … Read more