World leaders on Thursday promised US$5 trillion to stave off global economic collapse from the coronavirus pandemic that has killed 21,000 people and shut down huge swathes of the globe.
Argentina's GDP contracted 2.2% last year, hit by the downfall of manufacturing, retail and financial activities, according to the official stats office, Indec. In the last quarter of 2019 the economy dropped 1% over the previous quarter and 1.1% compared to the fourth quarter of 2018.
The World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund have issued the following joint statement to the G20 concerning debt relief for the poorest countries:
Brazil's largest city of Sao Paulo began fifteen days of lockdown to fight the spread of the coronavirus on Tuesday. This after Brazil's own president, Jair Bolsonaro, has faced fierce criticism for his blasé treatment to combat the threat, which he describes as a quote “little flu.”
President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday he wants to loosen the coronavirus lockdown in the United States and restart the economy within three weeks, calling social distancing measures too disruptive.
Argentina does not plan to resume debt payments to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for five years, buying time to pull the economy out of a worsening recession after the coronavirus outbreak led the government to impose a stay-at-home order until the end of March which also put the brakes- on activity
Argentina’s economy ministry said on Thursday it had exchanged around 257 billion pesos (US$ 4 billion) in a debt swap for new instruments maturing between 2021-2024, as the government looks to restructure its debt amid a credit crunch.
The coronavirus outbreak hammered Brazil on Wednesday, crushing local markets, infecting more members of the country’s political elite and prompting loud protests against President Jair Bolsonaro, whose son waded into a diplomatic spat with China.
The International Monetary Fund has quickly rejected a surprise request on Tuesday by Venezuela for an emergency US$ 5 billion loan to fight the new coronavirus, which threatens to push its already battered economy over the edge.
Brazil’s government on Monday announced emergency measures to inject nearly 150 billion reais (US$ 30 billion) into the economy to soften the blow from the coronavirus pandemic.