The Government achieved its objective of achieving the financial surplus in its first year of management. For that he had to carry out a drastic adjustment of public spending. The cut, which Javier Milei described as “the greatest in the history of humanity”, was led by the public works that were virtually paralyzed.
According to the fiscal monitor that PXQ elaborates, The consultant of the former Deputy Minister of Economy Emmanuel Álvarez Agis, the capital costs fell 77% and was the one who suffered the mostfollowed by transfers to provinces -68% (in many cases also for works), Other current expenses -66% and economic subsidies -34%.
The parate hit the companies. According to the Institute of Statistics and Registration of the Construction Industry (IERIC), by October 2024 the number of employers fell 9.2%which shows the disappearance of about four thousand firms in the sector in just one year. The data of the Argentine Grande Institute, which brings together technicians from Gabriel Katopodis, account for a loss of 80,000 jobs in the period.
Public works: the panorama for 2025
The budget project presented by the Government to Congress does not anticipate a better panorama for 2025. It provides for new cuts in transfers to provinces and municipalities and a minimum recovery for the capital cost departure with respect to what is executed in 2024.
At this point, that project is dead letter. Parliament will not treat it or treat it. But Fuentes de la Casa Rosada confirmed to the scope that Javier Milei completely rules out the possibility of increasing public works spending: “It does not happen just because there is no money, it is a conception of this government, except for exceptions, the works have to be done the provinces,” An official said by this means.
On this point, he anticipated that Far from advancing in a rise in spending or investment, the government will take advantage of the fiscal margin that is obtained to lower taxes. “When Milei’s song was done, it will not be mentioned routes or bridges,” joked the official with a dispatch in Balcarce 50.
The claim of SMEs
“We come from the worst year in the history of the sector, everything is so broken that what is unfailingly has to be good”said a Scope Gerardo Fernández, president of the Confederation of SMEs Construction of the Argentine Republic.
The synthetic indicator of the construction activity that measures INDEC last November a 23.6% year -on -year dropbut in the sector they warn that the indicator is distorted by the reactivation effect generated by Vaca Muerta. They point out that in the rest of the country the falls are deeper.
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“The routes are destroyed, the infrastructure is saturated, someone is going to take care of this situation”Fernández said. Many construction entrepreneurs believe that the provinces, with greater collection this election year, will take the post that leaves vacant nation.
The main request of the construction SMEs today goes through the works initiated during the previous management. Many of them have progress greater than 80%. They no longer ask even the necessary resources to finish them. What they want is that a definition be taken and contracts are terminated if necessary because in the meantime, they continue to carry costs such as insurance and security.
Source: Ambito
