The Central Bank announced this Wednesday that it will issue bonds for importers of goods and services with commercial debt that is outstanding. That is, for importers who financed their purchases abroad with loans and now must repay them.
The monetary authority indicated that these titles can be purchased in pesos at the official wholesale exchange rate and will be paid in dollars with an early redemption option. It was not defined whether they can be operated on the secondary market.
In the event that an importer wants to receive payment for these titles in advance, it will be paid in pesos with a linked dollar type format. Payment in foreign currency will only be made if it is waited until maturity.
In the communication from the Central Bank it was detailed that this new debt, which will have a Note character, will be called Bonds for the Reconstruction of a Free Argentina (Bopreal). The maximum maturity period of the titles will be October 31, 2027. The maximum rate that will be paid will be 5 percent annually, and the disbursement of interest will be quarterly or semiannual.
One of the objectives would be that importers who must buy dollars in the official exchange market to pay the commercial debt they took to import, do not go with all their pesos to buy foreign currency.
It would be a step prior to the intention to dismantle exchange controls and finish unifying the different dollars. If the equivalent of 30 billion dollars of commercial debt from importers goes to seek wholesale dollars, the price of this exchange rate would rise exponentially, and the opening of exchange controls would lose viability.
A second objective of the placement of this title would be to withdraw pesos from the market, since the Central Bank will receive local currency in exchange for these bonds. It would have a weight absorption effect in the short term. At the moment, the incentive for importers to buy these bonds is not clear, although they could use it as a hedge.
This is because if the titles are decided to be redeemed before maturity, they will be paid in pesos at the official exchange rate, that is, with an adjustment to the linked dollar rate. In the event that new imports no longer have controls, that is, there is unrestricted opening, they would be ensuring the exchange rate with which they will make new purchases abroad.
In a statement from the monetary authority on Tuesday, this Wednesday’s announcement had been anticipated. “One or more financial instruments issued by the Central Bank and payable in dollars will be made available to importers, which they may voluntarily subscribe in pesos to meet their commercial commitments. These instruments will contribute, at the same time, to reducing the amount of remunerated liabilities in domestic currency issued by the Central Bank.”
In that statement, some of the points that will be implemented for the exchange rate policy linked to foreign trade were specified. It was confirmed that they will seek to open imports completely. It is a measure that will have a strong impact on the industry and local SMEs.
“The set of immediate efforts in exchange matters is intended to preserve public credit and unblock foreign trade flows in order to restore the full functioning of the productive chain,” it was stated.
“We will work to simplify the payment system for imports of goods and services, eliminating any requirement linked to obtaining authorizations through the SIRA or the SIRASE, and will also void the requirement for the Single Foreign Trade Account Certificate. of AFIP”, detailed the monetary organization.
The statement detailed that imports that take place in the future may be paid respecting the international trade deadlines determined by the Central Bank, defined according to tariff positions.
“Given the historical record of inherited commercial indebtedness, the Central Bank is working, in coordination with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, to resolve the uncertainty associated with the payments and cancellation of this foreign debt in order to restore predictability in access to the Single and Free Exchange Market (MULC)”, it was specified.
2023-12-14 06:07:03
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