Argentina’s Central Bank halted a nearly seven-month period of dollar acquisitions, occurring just a day after the IMF urged officials to continue increasing foreign currency reserves. The monetary authority refrained from purchasing greenbacks in Argentina’s official currency market on Tuesday, marking the first instance of such an action since January 2, as stated by a spokesman. Thus far this year, it has acquired an average of US$97 million daily, elevating total foreign reserves to US$48.9 billion, approaching the peak level since 2019.
On Monday, Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, urged Central Bank Governor Santiago Bausili to “keep it up, keep buying,” during a press conference held in Buenos Aires. She visited President Javier Milei as relations between the IMF and Argentina, which owes the Fund US$57 billion, appear to have strengthened. The Central Bank of Argentina has acquired approximately US$13 billion since the beginning of the year, as stated by Georgieva, “exceeding the target we have in the programme” with the IMF. State-owned Banco Nación entered the spot market on Tuesday, selling dollars to bolster the peso around 1,500 per dollar, as reported by sources.
Traders indicated that the downward pressure on the peso could be attributed to an impending government dollar-linked bond repayment, as investors appear to be attempting to weaken the peso to enhance their returns. The currency depreciated by less than 0.1 percent, reaching a value of 1,498 per US dollar. Adding to the pressure on the peso, a university index of government confidence released late Monday indicated that Argentines’ confidence in Milei’s administration has reached its lowest point since he assumed office.
The demand for dollars among Argentine savers has emerged as a significant factor exerting pressure on the peso since the beginning of the year. Residents have been purchasing an average of approximately US$2 billion per month in foreign-currency banknotes this year, as indicated by data from the Central Bank. Nonetheless, the peso has depreciated by only 3.2 percent against the dollar in 2026, a figure that is considerably lower than inflation following years of more pronounced declines.