Argentina's new plan to skirt U.S. courts and resume payment on defaulted bonds aims to protect creditors who participated in two debt restructurings, Economy minister Axel Kicillof said on Wednesday. But he also emphasized that the bill sent to Congress did not mean a 'change of jurisdiction' from New York but rather a change of payment 'location'.
One of two hedge funds that sued Argentina over defaulted bonds branded the country's leaders “outlaws” on Wednesday after Buenos Aires moved to shift its bond payment method.
President Cristina Fernandez said on Tuesday her government will move to service its defaulted debt in Argentina or allow bondholders to swap their bonds for new bonds governed by national law in order to get around a U.S. court order.
The US dollars climbed to a record 13.15 Pesos on the black or 'blue' market on Wednesday trading as fears mount regarding the outcome of the holdout bonds conflict with the New York court. The official dollar rate closed at 8.2750 Pesos.
Economy ministry Axel Kicillof once again defiantly insisted Argentina has made a required debt payment on restructured sovereign bonds on Friday night, just hours after a U.S. judge threatened a contempt-of-court order if Argentina did not stop issuing such statements.
A day after Economy minister Axel Kicillof admitted problems with the Argentine economy, president Cristina Fernandez announced on Thursday a battery of measures to prop economic activity, open the labor market for young people, avoid redundancies and give the property market a thrust.
New York district judge Thomas Griesa and the Argentine government are again on the collision course: while the magistrate has ordered the Bank of New York Mellon to retain the funds deposited by Argentina to pay exchange bondholders and declaring the payment “illegal”, the Ministry of Economy in Buenos Aires suggested bondholder should change BONY for a new intermediary institution.
The Argentine Government will formally demand that Citibank and the Bank of New York Mellon pay exchange bondholders, the Economy Ministry informed on Tuesday in a press release.
The following article by Peter Eavis and Alexandra Stevenson was published in The New York Times and addresses the current litigation between Argentina and the speculative funds. The hedge fund firm of billionaire Paul E. Singer has about 300 employees, yet it has managed to force Argentina, a nation of 41 million people, into a position where it now has to contemplate a humbling surrender.
The leading Brazilian newspapers blasted Argentine president Cristina Fernandez as the sole responsible for the 'default event' which followed the failure of negotiations with holdouts in New York. This despite the fact Brazilian economy minister Guido Mantega denied Argentina was in default and strongly supported the Argentine government.