MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentine shares slide in New York as country risk climbs above 500 points

The sharpest moves came in Wall Street, where Argentine ADRs fell as much as 33%

Argentine stocks and hard-currency bonds fell on Tuesday, hit by a risk-off turn in global markets and fresh domestic uncertainty tied to the stalled overhaul of inflation measurement following Marco Lavagna’s departure from INDEC.

In Buenos Aires, the S&P Merval dropped 2.2%, taking early-February losses close to 5%, while dollar-denominated sovereign bonds slipped about 0.6% on average, according to Infobae. The JPMorgan country-risk gauge climbed to 503 basis points, its highest since Jan. 26.

The sharpest moves came in Wall Street, where Argentine ADRs fell as much as 33%. Bioceres Crop Solutions sank up to 33% and Globant slid roughly 12% in New York trading, Infobae said. Vista Energy also dropped after Bloomberg reported a planned stake sale by an Abu Dhabi investor.

Argentina’s pullback tracked a weaker U.S. close, with the Nasdaq Composite under pressure as investors reassessed the outlook for software and AI-linked names. Reuters said the downturn reflected fears that new AI tools could intensify competition for established software makers, weighing on sentiment across the sector.

Locally, commentators framed the move as a mix of profit-taking after a strong January rally and renewed caution over the policy outlook. Economist Gustavo Ber was quoted in La Nación and Ámbito describing the session as a “pause” after recent gains.

The market action also coincided with Economy Minister Luis Caputo confirming payments to the International Monetary Fund and reiterating that the government is not prioritising a return to international debt markets in the near term—key signals for investors tracking reserve accumulation and disinflation under President Javier Milei.