In one of his arrogant speeches where, as is his custom, he ridiculed the opposition, and also well-known economists, more rigorous than him in their analyses, President Milei spoke of a surplus in pesos that had not been achieved in years, and He set an example as a great triumph. The 518,000 million in January, the 338,112 in February. The 276,638 in March and the 17,409 million in April, determined a financial surplus in four months of 1.15 trillion pesos equivalent to 1.25 billion dollars.
Milei took great care to show the foundations of the surplus and said nothing about the cuts in subsidies, the liquidation of salaries and pensions. Nor from the decreases in capital transfers to the provinces (-86.1%), cuts to public works (76.3%), economic subsidies (-69.7%), social security benefits (36.1%) When month after month they left Knowing these figures, from the members of the cabinet to many complacent media commentators, they came out to celebrate these figures that had not been known for more than a decade. They considered these figures as a “success” for the president, forgetting that he suppressed himself and who he affected to obtain them. The biggest cuts were in January, but they continued in the following months until April. If we take the last four months, there was a primary surplus of almost 3.8 trillion pesos, which after paying interest on the public debt was reduced to 1.26 trillion. That is to say that all the adjustments that were made in a wild manner were, as usual, destined to pay the debt.
But beyond these numerical juggling, President Milei remained silent and did not make the slightest reference to the disproportionate increase in public debt in the last four months, nor did the minister Luis Caputowhich only showed what apparently gave a favorable result. And these supposed “overlooks” have not been mentioned by many media either, as if the disproportionate increase in the State’s obligations lacked any significance.
The public debt increased in the month of January 10,622 million dollars, in the month of February it increased 5,259 million dollars, in March 16,501 million and in the month of April 11,019 million, which means that as of April 30, the obligations of the State increased 43,401 million of dollars. 62% of this debt is in foreign currency and 38% in local currency, although the latter is subject to indexation mechanisms that make it grow more and more. In summary, As of April 30, the debt reached 414,056 million dollars, of which 411,616 are in a normal payment situation, and the rest in the hands of holdouts, with which no agreement has been reached.
It is important to highlight that in December 2022 the public debt It was 396,539 million dollars, and when Alberto Fernández left it had reached 425,294 million, meaning an increase of 28,755 million dollars in one year. The Ministry of Economy, based on recommendations from statistical manuals and based on international definitions, uses the dollar as a unit of account to provide comparability and standardize statistics, and for this reason, after the decided devaluation, Milei barely assumed the debt in December measured In dollars it was reduced to 370,664 and then it grew again, showing that in four months the current government increased the debt much more than the previous government did in a year.
To these figures, which are more than eloquent, it must be added that Minister Caputo, whom Milei described at the time as “irresponsible” and who “smoked” 15,000 million dollars from the Stand By of the year 2018, issued a bond for 4 billion pesosmaturing in 2025 adjusted by the reference stabilization coefficient (CER), and two bonds of $6 billion each, maturing in 2025 and 2026.
These are the irrefutable data that emerge from the official website of the Ministry of Economy, and show a reality different from lying stories about non-existent economic successes. Milei has hidden these figures, since, in his media success, they would have complicated certain explanations.
Finally, it would be important that President Milei, as verbose as he usually is, or President Santiago Bausiliwho is still accused by the Federal Prosecutor’s Office No. 6, for negotiations incompatible with the exercise of public office, will explain why the Central Bank continues to show worrying liabilities.
In fact, when the president took office on December 10, 2023, there were liquidity bills and notes for more than 28 billion pesos, 1.84 billion of which were in foreign currency, and obligations for repos operations for more than 17 and a half billion pesos. As of May 7, there are liquidity bills and notes for 47.5 billion, including bills and notes in foreign currency for 8 billion pesos. Repos also increased, reaching 36.5 billion pesos on that date (the figures are rounded), all of which arises from the weekly balances of the monetary institution. The one for May 15 is missing, not yet published.
Words that convince about the successes obtained are always easier, even if reality data clearly contradicts them. The current president, whose economic rigor is non-existent, whose contradictions are increasingly visible, and whose discursive rudeness is part of his usual ways, remains silent about the figures that I have transcribed, and only limits himself to showing what he can manipulate in appearance, because those who know how these figures are handled know very well that it does not show the truth.
Director of the Public Debt Observatory.
Source: Ambito
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