In Sergio Massa’s environment they recognize that measures are being studied to face the shortage of foreign currency and the new jump in inflation, but they deny the versions of an exchange rate unfolding. The Central Bank received US$680 million from CAF and CABEI, and they expect China to activate another US$1,000 million due to the swap extension.
Three sources from different official offices denied to Ámbito that the Government is going to face an exchange rate unfolding. Rumors about a change in the exchange market scheme gained momentum again this Monday, but the Ministry of Economy explained that, although measures are being worked on, this instrument is not part of the package under analysis. “We have liquidity,” they say in the economic team. In the last 24 hours, multilateral disbursements for US$680 million arrived and they are waiting for more currencies from the swap with China.
The concern exists and the warning lights went on in all the terminals of the complex network that the pro-government coalition became. As the weeks go by, the export calculations worsen, as a result of a relentless drought. At the same time, the consumer price index is overheating, which after climbing to 6.6% in February, is shaping up to reach 7% in March, according to private surveys.
Sergio Massa accelerated the meetings with his work team and analyzes measures to alleviate the decline in foreign currency income and the inflationary escalation. However, in the Ministry of Economy they flatly deny the rumors about a possible doubling of the exchange rate that gained momentum again this Monday. Another source from the economic team also ruled out that possibility outright: “We have liquidity,” he said before the Ámbito query.
The Central Bank sold some US$261 million this Monday, in a day marked by the access to the market of: YPF for US$20 million to pay a negotiable obligation, the province of Santa Fe for another US$26 million to face a bond from the province and Enarsa for US$262 million for the advance payment of LNG. As explained in the monetary entity, “these payments were expected to be made and do not alter the forecast for the first quarter of the year.”
Multilateral disbursements added
In less than 24 hours US$680 million entered the reserves for credits from the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) and the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF). In the first case, they were about US$395 million for social programs and in the second about US$285.4 million. The total of the currencies responds to announcements that Massa previously made and can be used freely.
Pending confirmation by the board of directors of the agreement reached with the organization’s staff, the Government and the International Monetary Fund agreed to postpone until March 31 the payments that were operating this week for US$2,717 million. For that date, the disbursement of US$5.300 million is foreseen, so foreign currency would not be lost immediately through this route.
The Central Bank also received three disbursements for US$1,000 million each, corresponding to the recent extension of the use of the current swap with the People’s Bank of China. A fourth payment for the same amount is expected before the end of the month and a final disbursement will arrive in April. The US$5,000 million are freely available and come to improve the level of liquidity for interventions in the exchange market.
Precisely, among the measures that are being considered in the economic team A more flexible payment term is being studied for importers who trade with China in yuan. The idea is to generate the greatest dollar savings possible in a bilateral relationship that is deficient for Argentina by some US$8,000 million each year.
Source: Ambito
