The government of new Argentine President Alberto Fernandez has announced that she has started “discussions” with the International Monetary Fund on the country’s foreign debt that Buenos Aires is unable to pay.
“We have already had discussions with the International Monetary Fund and there is recognition of the failure of” the loan program that Argentina obtained in 2018, stressing that “what is required is the recognition of the need for a different program,” adding, “In order to We do not have to undertake a severe budget reform, it is necessary to solve the debt problem. In order to pay, we must have the ability to pay, and for that to happen the economy must stand on its feet again. We want a constructive relationship with all creditors, bondholders and the IMF. ”
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The Minister expressed his support for the idea of his country obtaining a two-year freeze to serve the public debt (paying the interest due on its debts) through an agreement with creditors that also includes a rescheduling of the principal repayment.
In Washington, an IMF spokesman said that Guzmán had previously met the President of the Fund, Kristalina Georgieva.
In 2018, the International Monetary Fund agreed to grant Argentina a $ 57 billion loan, divided into three-year installments. To date, Buenos Aires has received a total of 44 billion dollars of this loan, but the new president has decided not to receive the last tranche of this loan, which is worth 11 billion dollars.
The total public debt of Argentina is 315 billion dollars, or nearly 100 percent of the country’s GDP.
In his press conference, the minister acknowledged the severity of the crisis the country is going through, saying, “We came to solve a very deep economic and social crisis. The situation is very fragile,” noting that the government has prepared an “integrated macro-economic plan” for the advancement of the country, without providing any details on This plan.
The International Monetary Fund predicts that inflation will reach 55 percent in Argentina this year, and that GDP will decline by 3.1 percent.
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