Argentina Must Maintain Fiscal Discipline, Says IMF Chief

(CTN News) – During a meeting with President Alberto Fernandez on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders Summit in Indonesia, Argentina IMF Managing Director Krista lina Georgieva called on Argentina to maintain fiscal “discipline.”

“We had a very insightful conversation about the impact of the war in Ukraine. It is very critical that Argentina stays on track as it has done so successfully in recent months,” Georgieva said, whose organization approved a US$44.5-billion aid programme for the country in March.

As part of its second review of its agreement with Argentina, the IMF approved the immediate release of US$3.8 billion, bringing the total disbursements to US$17.5 billion.

Georgieva highlighted Sergio Massa’s impact on the economy in a press conference.

As a result of the discipline exhibited by Minister Massa and his team, we were able to complete the second review within a short period of time,” said the IMF chief after her meeting with Fernández, who was accompanied by Massa and Foreign Minister Santiago Caifero when the talks took place in the Tampaksiring room of the Melia Hotel in Bali.

Jorge Arguello, Argentina’s ambassador to the United States, attended the meeting.

Georgieva said in our discussion that it is imperative to continue this discipline in this challenging global environment.

Furthermore, she highlighted the importance of persevering in the quest to reduce inflation and improve economic performance.

“Argentina must maintain the objective of lowering inflation,” said the IMF chief.

In the talks, Fernández called again for a reduction in IMF surcharges. He suggested that targets for next year might need to be revised in light of the conflict in Ukraine.

As a result of rising energy costs, Argentina’s government has lost an extra $5 billion.

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, food and energy security challenges have been at the forefront of discussions at the G20 Leaders Summit. These discussions took place in Bali, Indonesia over the past two days.

The Foreign Minister of Chile, Santiago Cafiero, said in an address this week that poverty and hunger kill more people than bullets and missiles in the southern hemisphere.

Retail prices rose 6.3 percent in October, bringing the annual rate to 76.6 percent since January, according to data released by the INDEC national statistics bureau on Tuesday. There has been an 88 percent increase in prices over the past year.

As a result of his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Bali, Fernández obtained a commitment to extend an existing currency swap agreement by a further US$5 billion.

So far, 130 billion yuan, or about $18.5 billion, of the swap mechanism has been agreed upon with China.

What did the IMF do to Argentina?

The authorities’ IMF-supported program provides Argentina with balance of payments and budget support that is tied to specific measures to strengthen public finances, tackle persistent high inflation, boost reserve accumulation, and set the basis for more sustainable and inclusive economic growth.

SEE ALSO:

NVIDIA Earnings Preview: Gaming Slump Extends To Data Centers