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Argentina manages a 7.3bn dollars surplus in first half of the year

Saturday, August 18th 2012 - 06:18 UTC
Full article 30 comments

Argentina trade surplus in the first half of the year reached 7.336 billion dollars, up 26.8% over the same period a year ago, with exports reaching 39.647bn dollars and imports 32.311bn, according to the official stats office Indec. Read full article

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  • Alexei

    I suppose that's what happens when your currency is worthless, your government slaps massive import tariffs on everything, nobody will give you credit and you can't afford to buy anything imported. But the Chinese will still buy all the beef and soya beans your farmers can produce.

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 07:26 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • windy

    Britain borrowed £13 billion pounds last month thats about U$S 20 billion.
    Which generation is going to have to pay that back?.
    UK PLC is forcast to borrow £120 billion just this year so as the saying goes people in glass houses should not throw stones.

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 11:13 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Conqueror

    @2 That's OK. Argieland still owes around US$85.2 billion. And the UK's GDP is around a thousand times that of argieland's. You need to get out into the countryside and start munching on that barley. It's all you'll have soon! Barley steaks. Yum, yum, yum.

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 12:11 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • ChrisR

    The first thing to remember is that these are 'official' figures - from Argentina.

    Ha, ha, ha, to the power google!

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 12:22 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • PirateLove

    “according to the official stats office Indec.” right! would this be the same indec that annouced inflation is at 9% when in reality its in its 30s, and the cost of food per person per day was $6 when in reality its about 4/5 times that figure.

    indec is a government puppet and nothing more!

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 12:31 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • briton

    ah the truth come out.
    thinking about it, we never could trust these slipery bananas .lol.

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 02:10 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • The Chilean perspective

    @ 3 Conqueror
    You are completely wrong in your assessment of the Argentine economy. The GDP ppp per capita of the UK is only 2.2 times that of Argentina, and your total GDP ppp is only 3.1 times that of Argentina keeping in mind that you have an extra 22 million more people, so you are way off. Argentina's economy is no show piece but the UK's economy is in greater trouble. It's gross external debt is almost twice the entire Latin American and Caribbean GDP combined (this is with giants like Brazil and Mexico included) and just you budget deficit is almost the size of the entire Chilean and Argentine budgets combined. Not looking too good. So you really should consider statistics such as these before you go on your unwarranted racist rants.

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 03:19 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Pirat-Hunter

    Lol this news headline should make evey Brit rage in anger while Argentina moves forward planing a better future, it's really too bad Brits invest soo much time trashing and envying, some animals never loose their natural instincts.

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 04:32 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • jerry

    The only way Argentina will move forward toward a better future is when the last vestiges of the CFK government are gone.

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 05:01 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Pirat-Hunter

    Lol oviusly trashing CFK will not help USA, UK, IMF or WTO to make Argentina dependent on their currency or loans, before 2001 Argentina would willingly get loans and pay interest rates but now they seem to be more inclined to produce and compete. USA, UK, IMF and WTO would be happy to see CFK gone but CFK was responsible for ending USA, UK, IMF and WTO control of the Argentine economy, I rather have self determination and an independent Argentine economy rather then USA, UK, IMF or WTO dictatorsuip. CFK is the symbol of progress in Argentina, no amount of trashing can change the reality lived by Argehtines since 2001 nothing can ever hide the corralito made possible by USA, UK, IMF, and WTO.

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 05:41 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • quetzald

    The latest reviews are the most successful, my regards to The Chilean perspective, while the world falls down you care about Argentina.
    From Argentina we do not believe that we are bad. Only enough to see the Euro ... not talking about Germany or France. The periphery, England, Spain, Greece, Italy
    my affections to friends and enemies ....

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 05:57 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Tobers

    @Chilean Pespective

    Argentinas national debt is certainly better than the UKs but there seems to be an insinuation that Argentines are not burdened by debt. They are. And massively. Personal debt from their credit cards is massive and proportionally to their wages its far more severe. The rate for borrowing in Argentina is such that you end up paying double of the listed price of an item over 18 months. Thats insane. Due to expected increase in inflation over time, the credit culture being a relatively new phenomema and Argentines desire to live more like those of richer countries. Id hate to think what mortgage rates are like. Do mortgages even exist?

    How do you feel about the economic situation and prospects for the future in Chile's case?

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 06:28 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Pirat-Hunter

    #12 I think people should do some research before posting comments, www.worldpropertychannel.com/latin-america-residential-news/argentina-real-estate-news-daniel-scioli-cristina-fernandez-argentina-housing-market-buenos-aires-housing-market-homes-for-sale-in-buenos-aires-5776.php
    In regards to Chile I don't know enough to say much about their economy other then it's imperative that they do not take on international credits, loans or other form of currency to move the local industry forward.

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 08:04 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • jerry

    Does anybody in the educated world understand anything @13 said?

    Aug 18th, 2012 - 10:18 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Condorito

    @7 Chilean Perspective
    I concur entirely.

    The UK economic situation is woeful. I am sure however, that the Brits will pull through this recession. They have an excellent, solid technical base that any country would be envious of. If the crisis lets them cut back the suffocating welfare state, they will be well set at the end on the other side of this crisis.

    I am not a fan of the way the Argentine economy is run, but this story is a good news story and I am pleased for Argentina that they are making progress despite all the problems.

    @Yankeeboy was on here the other day calling me ignorant because I don’t agree with him that the Argentine economy will collapse “imminently”. The simple point I made was that the devalued peso would boost exports...seems there might be some truth in that.
    What do you say Yankeeboy?

    @Alexi:
    “I suppose that's what happens when your currency is worthless”
    Alexi you do know that the GBP was worth USD 2.00 before the credit crisis and now is worth about 1.55? I mean, glasshouses and stones and all that.

    @Tobers:
    You ask: “How do you feel about the economic situation and prospects for the future in Chile's case?”
    Optimistic. Everything is going the right way for Chile at the moment (economically). The economy is close to 5% growth, inflation is very low, there is a trade surplus, the gov’t runs a fiscal surplus and there is $100 billion in mining projects in the pipeline. Falling copper price has already hit the profits (hence royalty payments) of big miners, so a lot depends on commodity prices, but I, like most here are extremely optimistic. The big political debate in Chile today is about where and how to spend the increased budget.

    Aug 19th, 2012 - 12:30 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Tobers

    @12

    Its interesting that the article you chose as an example is actually sceptical of the government mortage scheme. 400 000 more voters bought using money that should have gone to other areas.

    And non government mortgages are common? no.

    What about the problem of personal debt with 'high street' spending on credit?

    Aug 19th, 2012 - 12:34 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • The Chilean perspective

    @ 11 quetzald, @ 12 Tobers.
    Greetings to both of you.
    Firstly the economies of Chile and Argentina are very different, and the path that their respective administrations are taking to reach their goals are even more so. We in Chile (both the Gov. & opposition) are deeply committed to a policy of open competitive free trade with a responsible conservative fiscal policy. In fact it is illegal for the Gov. to run up a budget deficit. So all our budgets are balanced, in fact Chile has no NET GOV. DEBT, the state is a net creditor. The only one in the Spanish speaking world. However the state still has a credible social safety net and is currently redistributing resources in order to eliminate extreme poverty (@2.8%) , education reform (edu budg.US$11.6 billion) and balance the seriously unequal income distribution. This is a slower process when you have to maintain fiscal discipline as opposed to deficit spending. In relation to the future, it is very bright for Chile we are well on our way to reaching developed status in 2018 - 2020. Our growth for this year has been upgraded to 5% with an inflation of 2.3% and a surplus of .6% of GDP. The only area that is a little hot is the construction sector but bank lending here is very conservative and there's little risk of toxic debt. Exports have increased 20% pa. over the last 2 yrs and our export driven rather than consumption driven economy is paying dividends. If we can keep up this pace for the next 2 yrs the resulting compounding effect will mean that exports would have increased 100% and will put Piñera's admin in a league of their own.
    As for Argentina's economy they are a rich and mighty nation that has been slowly sabotaged from the inside. It is not too late and in fact they still have a rather good fiscal position, lowish debt mainly to internal lenders, a reasonable industrial base a productive agro industrial sector and both great farmers and blessed natural resources. Their main problem is administrative.

    Aug 19th, 2012 - 01:12 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Tobers

    @los Chilenos

    Thanks for the detailed response.

    I have a question; How easy is it for an Argentine to live and work in Chile? Oh and a Brit?!

    Aug 19th, 2012 - 01:53 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • The Chilean perspective

    @18 Tobers.
    Its relatively easy to live and work here in Chile
    Check out the following. If you do come don't forget to get health insurance. Our hospitals are exellent but they are not cheap if you don't have insurance.
    http://youtu.be/YqOLLV_op0E
    http://youtu.be/YqOLLV_op0E
    http://youtu.be/YqOLLV_op0E

    Aug 19th, 2012 - 03:27 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Conqueror

    @7 I do apologise. I was using figures from the top of my head. The actual figures for GDP (PPP) are: UK US$2,308,503 billion. Argieland US$710.7 billion. So the UK's GDP is 3,428 (and a bit) times that of argieland. Chile is, of course, in a much worse state in terms of comparison. The UK's GDP is 7,700.5 times that of Chile. I do hope that you recognise the different uses of the (.) and (,) symbols in numeric expressions. And Brazil's GDP? US$2,290,000 billion. These are a mix of 2011 and 2012 figures. Just going to prove that I'm right and you're wrong! So we can discount the rest of your comment, because it's garbage.
    @8 Not raging. Just noting that if your cesspit can keep this up, non-stop, for the next 6 years, you'll have enough to pay off your debts. Provided you don't use the “surplus” for anything else and provided you don't “borrow” any more. But you need to spend loadsa money, so you will. How many more years?
    @10 You have self-determination? How come? Isn't 86.4% of the argie population of white European ethnicity? So, an “implanted” population without any right to self-determination! Even CFK has European ethnicity. Spanish and German.
    @14 I think he's yammering about the argie real estate market based on CFK's promise to build 400,000 homes. Mind you, she hasn't built them yet! Interestingly, people will be able to borrow 40% of their income. Isn't it between 200% and 300% of income in the UK? And the money's coming from pension and treasury funds. People will be able to borrow up to the equivalent of US$77,000. That'll total US$30,800,000,000. Isn't that US$30.8 BILLION? There goes the next 2 years' trade surplus. Or the pension funds! Amazing how people get carried away when talking BIG figures. As though putting “billion” on the end makes everything better. Of course, I can only use the data made available, but I can do the arithmetic. And arithmetic isn't racist!

    Aug 19th, 2012 - 11:13 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Guzz

    conqueror
    Argentina alone has the same surplus as the whole of Europe. Chew on that :)

    Aug 19th, 2012 - 11:21 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • tehsoto

    As an argentine i have never seen such a violation of the constitution and freedom from a so called “democratic” government as with CFK's administration, there is no worse manager than the state for private companies, there has been absolutely no company touched by the CFK administration that hasn't gone broke, look the argentine airlines, now YPF, the soy trade issue, i have no idea in which fantasy world the kirchnerists live or in which drug they are on to... Perón, the one who stablished the “aguinaldo” (2 months a year you get double your salary because the yearly rate is low for the cost of living) has created a model to make everyone equally poor, in this outdated model, you have this “aguinaldo” only to lose it with devaluation and inflation at the end of the year, which is a complete robbery from the state to it's citizens. I have no idea of the situation people is living in the UK nor in the US, but i can assure you, they are not in this pseudo-dictatorship that we live with CFK nor scaring and complicating foreign investors in the country.

    The day Argentina is going to go up, is the day the peronism ideal is dead and the people stop voting for this so called left-wingers who create invisible enemies like a media monopoly, and then mutate into a complete oligarchy with too much power and very little economical wisdom.

    Regards for the people commenting here, i read them all !

    Aug 19th, 2012 - 11:51 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • The Chilean perspective

    20 Conqueror
    I used the wikipedia figures for 2011(PPP) on both and I can definitely do arithmetic unlike you who claim that the UK's GDP is seven thousand seven hundred point five times larger than Chiles. This is plain wrong, and your attempts at pumping your homeland's numbers are ridiculous. The best figure to look at is the GDP per capita where the UK is only double that of underdeveloped Chile, and our gov is a creditor, remember that. So how special are you?...Not very.
    BTW.. A special cheer to my homie Condorito who never ceases to leave me in a good mood with his sharp well informed posts. Good one bro.
    and like you say... “al que madruga dios le ayuda”.
    Chau.

    Aug 19th, 2012 - 01:07 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Guzz

    TCP
    My salutes to our Chilean brothers for not selling their country out despite oir differences. Al que madruga, le da sueño...

    Aug 19th, 2012 - 01:10 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • British_Kirchnerist

    #21 Bigger, according to the EU article =) Well done Queen Cristina =)

    Aug 19th, 2012 - 07:25 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Conqueror

    @21 argieland doesn't have ANYTHING!
    @23 Go on, quote your figures. I did!
    @25 argieland is full of sh*te. And you're about 10% of it!

    Aug 19th, 2012 - 08:51 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • sammy

    22teh,well I think you are spot on with your comments.The way the locals
    are treated,like criminals,is disgusting.How the hell can people live in a country that has corrupt politicians who treat everyone else as though they
    are the ones guilty of tax evasion etc.It doesn't make sense and if CFK thinks
    she is a wonderful presidente she is definitely delusional,but who will tell her?

    Aug 20th, 2012 - 02:29 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Guzz

    ... says the one that is watched 24/7 by big brother, all in line with his non-existant constitution :)

    Aug 20th, 2012 - 11:36 am - Link - Report abuse 0
  • Condorito

    24 Guzz,
    Selling out, never. Por la razon o la fuerza!
    Other than a footballistic deficit we have no “differences” with Uruguay ;)
    28 Guzz: You’ve got to love the unwritten constitution. Pure history in motion.
    23 TCP: Salu2 back atcha mano.

    Aug 20th, 2012 - 05:53 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
  • JoseAngeldeMonterrey

    7.2 b. is probably not a big surplus for an economy the size of Argentina´s, the contradiction is that this surplus would necessarily mean a strengthening of the local currency, but it is not happening, instead we are seeing the opposite. So this is nothing a momentary snapshot, we have yet to see the end of the movie, and it won´t be a happy end.

    Aug 20th, 2012 - 06:59 pm - Link - Report abuse 0

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