Argentina’s best chance of making a comeback from the brink and taming spiraling inflation is the economy minister who’s overseen it all, Bloomberg News reported. Sergio Massa, who’s running for president in an October election, is one of the most pro-market politicians within the ruling leftist coalition, according to Hans Humes, a longtime investor in the nation’s sovereign bonds and the chief executive of Greylock Capital Management.
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Argentina’s peso fell to a record low in the parallel market as the nation braces for volatility ahead of key primary elections Sunday, Bloomberg News reported. The parallel exchange rate, known locally as the blue-chip swap, weakened as much as 1.7% to around 591 pesos per dollar Monday. Argentina’s official exchange rate dropped as much 1.4%, the most intraday since September 2020, bringing the gap between the two to more than 109%.
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Argentina's Economy Minister Sergio Massa said on Monday the country will not use "a single dollar" of its own reserves to make a $2.7 billion repayment to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) due this week, Reuters reported. Massa, who is also a presidential candidate in this October's election, said in a speech that it would be possible because of an extended swap deal with China and a new loan from the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF).
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The International Monetary Fund said Friday that it reached an agreement with Argentina that would open the door for the cash-strapped South American country to receive $7.5 billion over the next few months as part of an existing program, the Associated Press reported. The agreement, which was under negotiations for weeks, still needs approval from the IMF Executive Board, which is scheduled to meet in the second half of August, the international financial organization said in a news release.
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The International Monetary Fund expects to conclude a review of its $44 billion financing program to Argentina in the coming days, potentially giving the South American nation a lifeline to keep its economy afloat until a new president takes office in December, Reuters reported. The IMF said on Sunday it had reached “understandings” on goals and parameters underlying a staff-level agreement that will eventually be submitted to its board for approval.
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Argentina President Alberto Fernandez warned against a sharp devaluation of the country’s currency as expectations mount that his soon-to-be-elected successor will have no other choice to address a chronic dollar shortage, Bloomberg reported. “An abrupt devaluation would be a problem for Argentina,” Fernandez said during an interview with Bloomberg TV’s Maria Tadeo in Brussels, where he is attending a summit of leaders from Latin America and Europe. He made no mention that a currency move he characterized as “very damaging” was imminent.
Argentines are tightening their wallets to make end meets as the South American country battles inflation which could surpass 140% on an annual basis this year, hunting for the cheapest prices on basic goods to shield their income, Reuters reported. The national statistics office INDEC is set to release the country's June inflation figure later on Thursday. Analysts polled by Reuters expect the rate of rising prices to slow to 7.0% in June from 7.8% the previous month.
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Argentina's monthly inflation rate is expected to slow to 7.0% in June, according to the median forecast in a Reuters poll, after hitting 7.8% in May, as the government battles to control spiraling prices ahead of elections in October, Reuters reported. The poll of 23 analysts measures inflation by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), with estimates ranging from 6.6% to 7.8%.
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Argentina’s central bank expects to hold its benchmark interest rate at 97% through the August primary elections as officials estimate monthly inflation slowed in June, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter, Bloomberg News reported. Central bank officials expect monthly price increases slowed to less than 7% last month, justifying the rate hike pause, according to the people, who asked not to be named to discuss upcoming policy decisions.
The International Monetary Fund said on Friday that Argentina is current in its payment obligations, and the government said it made a $2.7 billion payment to the fund using its existing stock of the IMF's reserve assets, and Chinese currency, Reuters reported. Argentina's economy ministry said through a spokesman the June payments were made "without using dollars" but the country's holdings of the fund's special-drawing rights (SDRs) and Chinese yuan. The operation, which depleted Argentina's $1.6 billion in SDRs, underscores how desperate the country's dollar position has become.
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