A planned $20 billion bailout to Argentina from JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup has been shelved as bankers pivot instead to a smaller, short-term loan package to support the financially distressed government, the Wall Street Journal reported. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and the Trump administration had been seeking to bolster Argentine President Javier Milei’s pro-reform party when they announced a pair of financial lifelines this fall. The package included a $20 billion currency swap with the U.S.

The United States said on Thursday that it will remove tariffs on some foods and other imports from Argentina, Ecuador, Guatemala and El Salvador under framework agreements that will give U.S. firms greater access to those markets, Reuters reported. The agreements are expected to help lower prices for coffee, bananas and other foodstuffs, a senior Trump administration official told reporters, adding the administration expected U.S. retailers to pass on the positive effects to American consumers.

A group of banks including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Goldman Sachs is struggling to put together a $20 billion loan to Argentina without leaving themselves too exposed to the financially distressed South American country, the Wall Street Journal reported. The bank loans would be part of the Trump administration’s plan to backstop the finances of libertarian President Javier Milei’s government with a $40 billion package, including a $20 billion currency swap with the U.S. Treasury Department and the separate $20 billion bank-led debt facility.

Banks including JPMorgan, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup are in talks with the U.S. Treasury to provide up to $20 billion in loans to Argentina, Semafor reported on Thursday, Reuters reported. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday had said that the department was working with banks and investment funds to create a $20 billion facility to invest in the South American country's sovereign debt. Bessent said that the facility would sit alongside a new $20 billion U.S.

Persistent exchange rate pressures continued to weigh on Argentina's financial markets on Wednesday, straining the Treasury as proceeds from a special liquidation deal with agricultural exporters dwindle, Reuters reported. Traders estimate the Treasury, under the Ministry of Economy, has sold more than $1.6 billion in the past six trading sessions to support the weakening peso. The ministry does not publicly report its market operations.

Argentina's economic activity grew 2.9% in July compared with the same month last year, official data showed on Wednesday. The figure for Latin America's third-largest economy came in below the 3.3% figure projected by analysts polled by Reuters. Read more.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday announced the Trump administration is looking at options to provide Argentina a financial lifeline as the country struggles to overhaul its economy, the Wall Street Journal reported. Bessent in a series of posts on X laid out the options administration officials are reviewing to backstop Argentina if the country under President Javier Milei’s leadership can’t overcome its financial woes. “These options may include, but are not limited to, swap lines, direct currency purchases, and purchases of U.S.

Pulp and paper manufacturer Celulosa Argentina SA filed for bankruptcy protection Monday, blaming the government of President Javier Milei for creating a bad business environment for local industry, the Buenos Aires Times reported. After missing bond payments, Celulosa, based in agricultural export hub Rosario, is now seeking protection from creditors in Argentina’s equivalent of a Chapter 11 process, according to an investor filing. Its locally traded shares slumped by as much as 17 percent on Monday and are down nearly 80 percent so far this year.

Argentina's central bank on Tuesday raised its reserve requirements for banks to a level analysts said could risk slowing the economy, a move analysts say aims to soothe markets as the government of President Javier Milei is rocked by corruption allegations ahead of key legislative elections, Reuters reported. The 3.5% increase - the third increase in recent weeks - is set to come into force on September 1, affecting a range of existing reserve requirement rates that average around 45%.