
The Brazilian Real slumped on Monday as mounting concerns over this year's presidential election added to global risk aversion, while the Argentine peso extended a recent sell-off that also spread into stock markets in Latin America.

President Mauricio Macri unveiled plans on Monday to raise export taxes on grains and slash the number of government ministries in a bid to balance its budget next year, as Argentina seeks a deal with the IMF to accelerate a US$ 50 billion standby loan program.

Argentina is drafting plans to cut its budget deficit to convince nervous investors it can pay its debts and this Monday Finance minister Nicolas Dujovne is scheduled to announce measures, before traveling to Washington to meet with IMF's chief Christine Lagarde.

S&P said on Friday it may lower Argentina's long-term foreign currency rating from its current B+ grade, which is four notches below investment grade -- and on par with Turkey, Greece and Fiji. The ratings company cited the risk of worsening creditworthiness and exchange rate volatility as potential threats to the economic adjustment measures undertaken by Mauricio Macri’s administration.

Argentina’s beleaguered peso stabilized on Friday as the central bank said it would auction a large amount of dollar reserves, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) issued a strong statement of support for President Mauricio Macri’s government.

The Argentine Peso plummeted 15.6% to a new record on Thursday, and ended trading at 39.87 after having reached almost 42 Pesos to the US dollar in mid afternoon. This follows on the Wednesday which also witnessed the Argentine currency slide 7% to the greenback.

Argentina's Peso suffered its biggest one-day slide in almost three years on Wednesday after the central bank sold reserves for a second straight day and the president asked the International Monetary Fund for early release of standby funds.

Argentina re-launched a one-year-old agreement between the government, companies and workers to drive competition and spur development in the Vaca Muerta shale play, the government said in a statement.

Argentina's beef exports could double in 2018 for a total of US$ 1.8 billion thanks to increased Chinese demand and a sharp devaluation of the peso currency, according to analysts and industry experts.

Argentine president Mauricio Macri linked the poor state of the country's infrastructure to the so called “K corruption notebooks”, but also praised that truth is coming to light and in just two years Argentina's standing in the Transparency rating had gone from position 54 to 17.