Despite appeals to national unity from president Cristina Fernandez, the US dollar, Argentina's best test for confidence, climbed 22 cents to a new record in the informal market at the end of Tuesday's trading: 14.20 Pesos.
The Argentine government again blasted Judge Thomas Griesa for declaring 'illegal' the bill sent to Congress referred to the country's debt and creditors, and said the magistrate ignores national sovereignty and ignores how democratic institutions function.
European investors holding 5.2 billion dollars of restructured Argentine bonds are negotiating the removal of the Rights Upon Future Options (RUFO) clause that Argentina claims prevents them from negotiating with holdout funds, it was reported in the Buenos Aires media.
US District Judge Thomas Griesa declared on Thursday that an Argentine plan to change the 'jurisdiction' of restructured foreign debt was illegal, while resisting holdout investors' demands that Argentina be held in contempt of court for attempting to change the site of payment to Buenos Aires.
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.