Argentina will seek an Extended Fund Facility (EFF) from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to replace a failed US$ 57 billion facility, Economy Minister Guzman said on Monday, potentially buying the country more time to make repayments.
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.
The Argentine representative before the International Monetary Fund, IMF, Sergio Chodos, admitted that it could be necessary for further financing from the IMF, with which Argentina is in the process of renegotiating conditions for the return of the US$ 44 billion loaned to the previous government of ex-president Mauricio Macri.
Argentine bondholder groups slammed the government over economic policies they said were undermining investor confidence in the country, which emerged from a sovereign default in September after a US$ 65 billion restructuring.
Argentine Economy Minister Martin Guzman said on Friday the country has the necessary instruments to maintain the current exchange rate policy, despite tumbling foreign reserves and a ballooning gap between the official and informal peso exchange rates.
“Argentina faces very dramatic challenges, the country is in deep recession and social conditions are worsening”, was the response of IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva when asked about the difficult challenges faced by Argentina and if the current government has the political will and consensus to move forward with a plan to restore confidence.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts that the Argentine economy will fall by 11.8% this year, and rebound by 4.9% in 2021, the credit agency announced. This was stated in the Economic Outlook Report (WEO) called A long and difficult road uphill, where as a result of the pandemic it estimated a fall in world GDP of 4.4% and a recovery of 5.2% by 2021.
An International Monetary Fund mission concluded a visit to Argentina on Sunday, after several days of preliminary talks aimed at repaying about US$ 44 billion owed by the cash-strapped government to the fund.
Argentina's Economy Minister Martin Guzman said on Thursday that a mission from the International Monetary Fund will arrive in the country next week as the country looks to negotiate a new program with the organization.
Argentine newly issued international bonds are once more on the slide as investors price in rising risks over the country’s economic recovery and much-needed market reforms following tightened capital controls last week.