MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina expected to request fresh funds from IMF; mission arrives next week

Argentina wants to defer some US$ 45 billion in payments to IMF over the next few years, as it heads for an expected 11.6% economic contraction in 2020

A mission from the International Monetary Fund will visit Argentina from Nov. 10 to begin formal negotiations for a new financing program, an IMF spokesman said on Friday.

Dialogue between the mission and Argentina will focus on the government’s fiscal agenda in the medium term “with the aim of anchoring macroeconomic stability and laying the foundations for inclusive and sustainable growth,” the spokesman said in a statement, adding that there is no set date for negotiations to conclude.

Argentina is looking to update its US$ 57 billion IMF agreement struck two years ago that failed to prevent a slide into recession and the country’s ninth sovereign default. Argentina wants to defer some US$ 45 billion in payments over the next few years, as it heads for an expected 11.6% economic contraction in 2020 and battles a currency crisis.

The country could request a fresh round of cash from the IMF during negotiations, an IMF official said in October, with the aim of boosting market confidence.

The IMF mission to Argentina will be led by Julie Kozack, the Fund’s deputy director for the Western Hemisphere, and Luis Cubeddu, head of the IMF’s mission in Argentina.