Argentine officials have blamed organized “mafias” for promoting birth tourism to Russian mothers-to-be after several pregnant women were temporarily prevented from entering the country. Since the invasion of Ukraine, thousands of Russian women have come to Argentina looking to get their children citizenship. Russians can travel to Argentina without a visa, where all newborns are granted citizenship automatically, making it an attractive destination for so-called birth tourism. Last Friday, six pregnant Russian women said that they were being held at the border in Ezeiza airport, unable to enter the country after immigration officials accused them of being “fake tourists”. “It’s a cruel, inhumane, degrading treatment to pregnant women who are traveling by themselves,” he said, adding that women who had come with their partners were not stopped at the airport.

Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro said on Saturday he plans to return to Brazil “in the coming weeks,” after having spent more than a month in the United States. Bolsonaro flew to Florida two days before incumbent Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was sworn in as the new president on Jan 1, and later applied for a six-month tourist visa to continue his stay in the United States. “There is no place like home … We know Brazil is a fantastic country,” Bolsonaro told a gathering of Brazilians in Boca Raton, a video posted online by broadcaster CNN showed. “I also want to return to Brazil. I intend to return to Brazil in the coming weeks.”Brazil’s Supreme Court has agreed to open an investigation into Bolsonaro for allegedly encouraging anti-democratic protests that ended in the storming of government buildings by his supporters in Brasilia.

It is the worst violence in Peru in two decades and threatens to destabilize one of region’s most reliable economies. Armas’ comments come a day after the central bank maintained its benchmark interest rate at 7.75%, making it the first time since the second half of 2021 that the bank did not hike its rate. On Thursday, the International Monetary Fund called inflation Peru’s most immediate policy challenge, in a statement following a staff visit to the country. Armas highlighted that inflation was seen to be on a “downward” trend, with January’s figures slightly better than expected. The bank now forecasts inflation for early 2024 to reach 4.62%, above the previous forecast of 4.3%.

The local grain futures market is already assuming that the government will launch a renewed soy dollar in July, or another mechanism to speed up the entry of fresh dollars. It comes as drought continues to reduce soy harvest forecasts, with the liquidation of foreign currency for the first two months of the year expected to be the lowest since 2007. May is traditionally one of the strongest months for the inflow of foreign currency from the soybean harvest. In parallel, available soy from last season is also increasing its value in the local market. Projections of future foreign currency income in 2023 from agricultural exports is US$47 billion, a setback of more than US$13 billion compared to last year.

Argentina’s state-run oil company, YPF, signed yesterday a memorandum of understanding for hydrocarbon cooperation with Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), India’s biggest oil and gas company. The Argentine company also announced that it would seek US$1 billion in financing for investments in Vaca Muerta. According to YPF, the agreement seeks to improve cooperation between the two companies in the sector, including collaboration in the exploration and development of oil and gas. The memorandum was signed during that event with the presence of India’s Oil and Gas Minister, Shri Hardeep S Puri, ONGC’s authorities, and YPF chairman Pablo González. “Our external funding goal is around US$1 billion, with a first round in Argentina we secured US$300 million,” said YPF head Pablo González.

Rainfall over the past few days has improved the conditions of planted soybeans and corn, especially in plantations that were sowed later. Soy sowing was finally completed this week, with some 16.2 million hectares planted, according to the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange’s latest survey. At the same time, water conditions also improved, with 47% of the planted area reportedly in adequate or optional conditions. Some 56% of the second-batch soy area is currently reporting poor or regular crop conditions and the central-eastern area of Entre Ríos is the hardest-hit region. This represents 7.5 million tons less than the previous season, which reached 52 million tons.

The government will launch the second stage of the Precios Justos (Fair Prices) price control agreement today, which will allow companies to mark up prices by 3.2% a month. The new stage will maintain the price freeze on those 2000 products –a list that can, and probably will, be modified. The list of items whose price rises are controlled will be expanded to 52,000 products, and the allowable monthly price rise will be reduced from 4% to 3.2%. According to official sources, 482 companies have joined Fair Prices, and 50 more could do so today. According to official sources, no major supply issues were encountered and compliance levels surpass 80%.

President Alberto Fernández will meet with Germany’s chancellor Olaf Scholtz on Saturday, January 28, at the Foreign Ministry’s San Martín Palace in Buenos Aires, together with Foreign Minister Santiago Cafiero. Scholtz’s first official visit to Argentina is part of a regional tour that will continue in Brazil and Chile, and aims to expand bilateral trade, investment and project financing, according to a release from the Office of the President. on Saturday, where he will be welcomed by Foreign Minister Santiago Cafiero and a delegation of officials, businessmen and journalists. Afterwards, at 6:45p.m., they are scheduled to make a traditional floral offering at the monument to the Liberator General Don José de San Martín, in the Square of the same name in Buenos Aires. Bilateral trade between the two countries topped the US$3.6 billion mark in 2022, an 8% growth from the previous year.

Foreign Minister Santiago Cafiero and United States Ambassador Marc Stanley celebrated today the 200th anniversary of bilateral relations between Argentina and the US in the Palacio San Martín in Buenos Aires. As part of the celebrations, Cafiero and Stanley placed a wreath on José de San Martín’s bust and then kept a protocol meeting. The formal relationship between Argentina and the US began on January 27, 1823, when the North American country officially recognized the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata. In the same vein, Stanley said that “Argentina and the US have a great opportunity to help feeding and supplying fuel to the world”. Klaine also congratulated Argentina on its three World Cup victories, calling the team “champions” and saying they had inspired “generations of athletes”.

Argentina on Wednesday launched the first working group of a new national agency to regulate and promote the country’s nascent cannabis industry, which ministers hope will create new jobs and exports, generating fresh income for the nation. “This opens the door for Argentina to start a new path in terms of industrial exports, on the basis of huge global demand,” said Economy Minister Sergio Massa in a conference launching the national hemp and cannabis agency, ARICCAME. Francisco Echarren, who will lead the agency, said the industry could generate thousands of new jobs, as well as creating technological developments and new products for export. In addition to regulating and promoting the cannabis industry, the Cannabis National Agency will also import, export, cultivate, produce, manufacture, and market seeds and cannabis for health and industrial purposes. The decree also allowed pharmacies to sell products derived from cannabis, and ordered insurers to cover marijuana-based medications for patients with a prescription.

At least 67 journalists and media workers were killed in 2022, the most since 2018, according to a report by press freedom nonprofit, the Committee to Protect Journalists. Out of that total, which represented an increase of nearly 50% compared with 2021, 30 were killed in Latin America. As a result, the report deemed the region as “the deadliest” for journalists in 2022. In at least three cases, journalists were killed for reporting on crime and politics, and had received threats prior to their deaths. Apart from the seven killings registered in Haiti, CPJ also documented work-related killings of four journalists in Brazil, Chile, and Colombia.

President Alberto Fernández met with U.S. President Joe Biden’s Special Advisor for the Americas, Christopher Dodd, to discuss bilateral and regional co-operation following the CELAC summit in Buenos Aires on Wednesday noon. Although the US and Canada are not members of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), Joe Biden sent Dodd as an envoy to meet with some of the region’s leaders, attending as an observer. Christopher Dodd, Asesor Especial del presidente Biden para las Américas, se reunió con el presidente Alberto Fernández para conversar sobre el fortalecimiento de la cooperación bilateral y regional. The pair discussed the scope for growth in areas such as lithium, electric cars, fossil fuels, innovation, agribusiness, and renewable energy. 🇦🇷🇺🇸Me reuní con el Asesor Especial del presidente Biden para las Américas Christopher Dodd y el embajador Marc Stanley, con quienes trabajamos en la promoción de políticas de cooperación económica para fomentar el desarrollo económico y potenciar nuestras relaciones bilaterales.

The Economy Ministry obtained funds for AR$416 billion in the first bond auction of the year, more than it needed to cover its AR$352.32 billion maturities. The auction took place the day Minister Sergio Massa announced the buyback of US$1 billion of sovereign debt. “Offers were received for a total nominal value of AR$690 billion, allocating an effective value of almost AR$420 billion. It is the first time since September that the Ministry has offered a bond that will mature after the presidential election – a dollar-linked bond that matures at the end of October 2023. Seven types of bonds were offered in total, with maturities between April 28, 2023 and October 31, 2023.

The Economy Ministry, led by Sergio Massa, issued fines of more than US$1 billion in just one semester for maneuvers in foreign trade, both for over-invoicing and under-invoicing of exports. According to a Customs report, fines in foreign trade operations increased six-fold, comparing the first and second semesters of 2022. In the last months of 2022, the audited amount rose to US$4.75 billion, with fines issued for US$1.02 billion –667% more than the previous semester’s US$133 million in fines. “These maneuvers aim to establish financial assets abroad (in foreign currency), leveraging on the exchange rate gap,” said sources from Customs. There have been 3,146 precautionary measures issued in the last two years linked to the previous imports system –called SIMI– for a total amount of US$2.52 billion.

The Argentine Football Association’s president appeared to confirm today that Lionel Scaloni has committed to continue as head coach of the Argentine team. In an interview with radio La Red, Claudio “Chiqui” Tapia said he and Scaloni are “committed to keep on going together”, and that they will sign a contract once the coach comes to Argentina. “That’s going very well,” Tapia said about Lionel ‘Gringo’ Scaloni’s continuity when asked the question “the whole country is asking”. While Scaloni’s contract is not yet signed, Tapia was confident the head coach will remain in post leading the Argentine team. When asked to what degree was Scaloni’s continuity a sure thing, from 1 to 10, he laughed and said: “we always carry the number 10 on us”.