By Anne Krueger (*) - Argentina's President Mauricio Macri knew that he had inherited a sick economy when he took office in 2015, but failed to take his medicine. As a result, the country now has no choice but to face up to a period of painful structural adjustment.
Argentina's political future seems to be no mystery regarding the upcoming October 27 presidential elections. So much so that First Lady Juliana Awada's snap trip Sunday to Madrid citing entertainment and social engagements was announced by the media as a preparation for a post December 10 exile that looks inevitable after the outcome of the August 11 primaries.
Unemployment in Argentina reached 10.6% in the second quarter of 2019, the highest ever since President Mauricio Macri took office in December, 2015, according to data released Thursday by the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INDEC).
Argentine Federal Prosecutor Guillermo Marijuan was appointed Thursday to lead an investigation against President Mauricio Macri for allegedly extorting a media businessman to relinquish spectrum frequencies which the government was interested in passing on to a rival group.
Argentina's central bank this week announced further currency controls in an effort to tame speculation and stem a spiraling debt crisis in Latin America's third-largest economy.
Prices in Argentina shot up last month after a shocking primary vote plunged the peso, reversing four months of declines.
Thousands of protesters camped on Wednesday in downtown Buenos Aires to demand that Argentina declare a food emergency as the economic crisis deepened just weeks ahead of the presidential election.
Despite a history of many IMF rescue programs, Argentina once again faces a deepening financial crisis, raising questions about whether the Washington-based lender made a mistake in its dealings with Latin America's third largest economy.
Argentina's presidential front-runner Alberto Fernandez is on a tightrope between the interventionist policies of his better-known running mate Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and the stumbling free-market reforms of incumbent Mauricio Macri.
Another volatile week with still many uncertainties begins this Monday for Argentina even when some of the latest measures adopted by the administration of President Mauricio Macri helped to calm markets, debilitating apocalyptic forecasts.