The economic team sent by the Minister of Economy, Sergio MassaI travel to Washington on Monday night with the aim of finalizing the technical agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Key definitions are expected at the end of the week, including a sneak peek at disbursements by the multilateral organization, as announced by Ámbito.
A crucial conversation between Massa and the director of the IMF, Kristalina Georgievaduring the weekend he helped to unblock the negotiations in which the Government of USA plays a crucial role. Based on that dialogue, Massa concluded that a technical agreement could be reached this Fridayaccording to sources from the Palacio de Hacienda to this medium.
Consequently, the Vice Minister of Economy, gabriel rubinstein; the head of the Cabinet of Advisors, Leonardo Madcur; and the vice president of the Central Bank, Lisandro Clerithey left for the US capital to negotiate the clauses of the agreement with the bank of last resort and access to new funds that will inflate the coffers of the Central Bank.
Regarding the advances of disbursements, it is estimated that the figure could rise to u$s8,500 millionalthough from the Ministry of Economy they avoid being precise in this regard.
It should be remembered that the pending funds of the program that Argentina maintains with the IMF for the second half of the year they add up to approximately US$10.4 billion.
IMF: the imminent announcement would come this week
If the talks come to fruition, there is a possibility that the minister and candidate for presidentMassa, travel to the US to sign the agreement and that the so-called “staff level agreement” (SLA), which must then be approved by the Directory.
If this happens, Massa would achieve the technical agreement before the IMF Board of Directors goes into recess for the summer vacation, which usually extend throughout the month of August. The pact would provide more stability to the markets in the midst of the ongoing electoral campaign.
Likewise, it would remain to be resolved whether the technical agreement will be dealt with by the Board of Directors before summer breaksince the formal term from the confirmation of the understanding until its treatment by the highest authority of the organization usually takes around two weeks.
The Ministry of Economy had requested to pay the maturities of the current month for an amount of US$2,700 million at the end of July, pending an agreement with the agency.
Recently, the head of that portfolio highlighted that Argentina is “very close” to reach an agreement with the IMF, stressing that such an understanding will be reached “defending an idea of a development country with inclusionwithout giving up sovereign capacity and without surrendering to fiscal austerity”.
Massa emphasized that the negotiations with the IMF at this time require a proactive visiona determination to defend the interests of the country and a conviction on how to set priorities.
From the IMF, the spokeswoman julie kozack noted last week that the focus of these discussions is on alternatives to strengthen the program of the Argentine authorities.
Recognizing the impact of the drought on the economy, this includes policy review to ensure stabilitystrengthen reserve accumulation, improve fiscal sustainability and protect the most vulnerable, according to Kozack.
Source: Ambito
