Brazil's Lula doesn't want to 'please anyone' over Ukraine stance
Lula has been criticised in the West for suggesting Ukraine and Russia are to blame for the conflict that began when Moscow invaded its neighbour in February 2022. Last week he said the United States and European allies should stop supplying arms to Ukraine saying they were prolonging the war. “If you are not making peace, you are contributing to war,” said Lula. Lula arrived in Portugal on Friday for a five-day visit as he strives to improve foreign ties. Portugal’s President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, who accompanied Lula at the news conference, said their countries’ stance on the war were different.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 23, 2023 06:09 UTC
Government misses IMF fiscal target
The government missed the first-quarter fiscal deficit target agreed with the International Monetary Fund by 56%. The government and the IMF signed an Extended Fund Facility agreement in 2022 after renegotiating the US$44 billion debt former President Mauricio Macri acquired in 2018. The fiscal deficit would have reached just 40% of the final Q1 figure if the government’s export duty collections had remained stable in real terms, meaning that it would have over-complied with the IMF’s targets, the report stated. Both Ecolatina and another consulting firm, the Argentine Center for Political Economy (CEPA), concluded that, in March, public expenditure was slashed by 17%. “It is worth recalling that another [waiver] will be asked for the international reserve target.”
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 23, 2023 03:35 UTC
Analysis: internal maneuvers and the dollar triggered Fernández’s withdrawal
The most voted candidates of each political space are the ones who formally compete in the general elections. The province of Buenos Aires is the largest electoral district in the country, representing 37% of the national electoral roll. Winning in the province of Buenos Aires is a fundamental step to reaching the presidency of the Nation. Why was a sector of the ruling party willing to separate the general elections in the province, which must elect a governor this year, from the presidential elections? Because according to some sectors, the current governor of the province of Buenos Aires, Axel Kicillof, has more chances to be reelected if Fernández is not on the ballot in the province of Buenos Aires.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 22, 2023 10:19 UTC
Uneven market reaction to Fernández’s withdrawal
Dollar uncertaintyThe parallel dollar exchange rates are continuing a particularly sharp upward trend that started this week and reachedleft the US currency at record highs. The blue-chip swap exchange rate is at AR$452, having closed yesterday at AR$4365.74. The informal dollar exchange rate, or “dólar blue” as it is popularly known, also saw a surge. The financial broker told the Herald that those bonds are still cheap and that the market is not expecting an aggressive restructuring with big removals. In its last review of the program, the IMF “relaxed” the reserve accumulation target due to the historic drought.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 21, 2023 23:13 UTC
Destitution threshold jumped by 9% in March
A family is considered to be in poverty if they earn less than the basic food basket plus services, known as the total basic basket. The year-on-year increase for the basic food basket and the total basic basket were 120.1% and 113.2% respectively. The figures for poverty and destitution are significantly higher than the general inflation rate for March, which totaled 7.7%, and year-on-year, which was 104.3%. During the first three months of the year, the basic food basket surged 30.6%, while March’s inflation increased by 21.7%. In their general inflation report, the INDEC said that the “foods and non-alcoholic beverages” had a 9.3% monthly hike, above general inflation.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 21, 2023 22:21 UTC
Central Bank raises interest rates, restricts official dollar access
The restrictionsOn the other hand, the Central Bank extended the timeframe in which it sells US dollars at the official rate to companies. The Central Bank will also start requiring previous authorization for intra-company debt payments in US dollars. The Central Bank said these measures postpone making US$2 billion in payments, which would further deplete its international reserves for 2023. The Central Bank is currently facing an international reserve scarcity crisis, the main cause of the surge in the parallel US dollar rates. Today, for the first time this week, the Central Bank recorded a positive balance, bringing in US$44 million.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 21, 2023 05:05 UTC
Brazil's govt to support riot enquiry after advisor scandal
Brazil’s Institutional Relations Minister Alexandre Padilha said on Thursday the government will support a congressional inquiry into the January 8 anti-democratic riots, in which supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro stormed government buildings. Sources close the president said there was no doubt that Dias did not support or facilitate the invasion by supporters of former president Jair Bolsonaro in any way. Dias was head of presidential security during Lula’s two previous terms. Padilha described claims the footage showed the government had facilitated the invaders’ entry as “an absurd conspiracy theory”. “The leaked footage brought in a new political fact so we will support the inquiry, which in my opinion will put an end to yet another conspiracy theory,” he added.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 20, 2023 14:28 UTC
Bond auction: government gets AR$227 billion
The Economy Ministry secured AR$227.13 billion in its bond auction today in the first round of April, where it faced maturities of AR$189.4 billion. “This is the auction with the third-highest number of bids so far this year,” Finance Secretary Eduardo Setti tweeted today. — Eduardo Setti (@EduardoSettiOk) April 19, 2023“Thus, the rollover of the private sector was 123%, while that of the public sector was 105%,” Setti said. “Of the total cash value awarded, 85% was from the private sector, while the remaining 15% was from the public sector. The IMF had also discouraged “overly onerous interest rates” — one of the bonds had a 130% annual interest rate.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 20, 2023 14:21 UTC
Five perfectly Argentine films at Bafici
A massive utopian project to move the Argentine capital to Patagonia in the 1980s. The Buenos Aires Independent Film Festival (Bafici), which kicks off today, offers more than 250 films from all over the world. BAFICI Section: Noches especiales (Special Nights)In 1986, President Raúl Alfonsín attempted to move the Argentine capital to the small city of Viedma, in Río Negro province, the heart of deserted Patagonia. But the one feature that would be imprinted in Argentine history ended up being the idea of transforming Viedma into the nation’s capital, a brand new city like an Argentine Brasilia. A champion of Argentine film preservation and promotion, his love for cinema is as contagious as his motto: Alegría sin fin!
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 19, 2023 21:32 UTC
Milei’s controversial ‘dollarization’ proposal: consulting firms weigh in
If converted to the blue-chip swap rate, Argentina would need an extra US$11.7 billion to “rescue” its monetary base. However, that doesn’t include liquidity bills — to buy back all of the Central Bank’s liabilities, Argentina would need US$43 billion. “If we assume that there is not going to be an extraordinary loan, then an ‘orderly’ dollarization is not possible,” the 1816 report said. “This would deepen the fall in income generated by the dollarization itself,” the report read. The alternative to dollarization is to implement a public policy agenda to strengthen the national currency.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 19, 2023 12:18 UTC
Lithium: record exports and battery-production fine print
Lithium is no longer a promise of the future and the government is starting to record actual data: exports hit record numbers in the first quarter of 2023 with a 133% year-on-year increase. Lithium exports have broken a new record: they added up to US$91 million in March, so the first quarter had an overall foreign sales total of US$233 million (a 133% increase). Hence, lithium dollars already account for a third of the country’s mining activity (27%), according to data from the Secretariat of Mining. Industrializing lithiumThe Lithium Board, formed by governors, the Executive Branch, and the Economy Ministry, has agreed on a legal framework to promote industrialization. The Economy Ministry views this bill more favorably, which will establish a set of promotion measures and will likely make it to Congress this year.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 19, 2023 02:33 UTC
Transport strikes: 200 bus lines to stop running on Wednesday
Thousands of passengers across Buenos Aires are affected by strikes this week as bus companies demand the government update subsidies for them. Subway lines also stopped circulating last night as workers demanded their working hours be reduced because of fears about asbestos in the underground network. However, sources in the Transport Ministry told Télam that the payments were made last week. Last night, subway lines B and C were down because workers were on strike, continuing industrial action they carried out last week. Workers are demanding that their working hours be reduced due to the presence of asbestos – a carcinogenic mineral – in the lines.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 18, 2023 14:03 UTC
Government launches website following dictatorship trials in real time
“Trials against humanity in real time,” a website that followed the hearings of each trial in real-time, was launched as a tool in 2021. Now the Crimes Against Humanity website adds information on each case, including all of those who have already received sentences, and those that remain open. The new website includes information that civilians can use to follow up on each of the processes. “The website puts the consequences of delays in concrete numbers,” Human Rights Secretary Horacio Pietragalla told the Herald. The website uses databases from the Human Rights Secretariat and the National Public Prosecutor’s Office as well as other prosecuting authorities.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 17, 2023 19:39 UTC
Argentina to host the U-20 World Cup
Argentina will host the next U-20 World Cup, the country announced today. The U-20 World Cup is for national men’s football teams for players under the age of 20. FIFA will allow Argentina’s U-20 men’s team to participate as the host country, despite the fact that it failed to qualify during the South American U20 tournament. Massa and Tapia held a ceremony at the Economy Ministry alongside the AFA board of directors and Tourism and Sport Minister Matías Lammens. Ahead of the midday announcement, the government had published a decree today authorizing resources for the application to host the tournament.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 17, 2023 19:11 UTC
Analysis: Neuquén incumbent party likely to triumph but Río Negro provincialists could struggle
In both provinces, local ruling parties Neuquen Popular Movement (MPN) and Together We Are Río Negro (JSRN) expect to hold power. In the first case, the Peronist candidate endorsed by Justice Minister Martín Soria will be Silvia Horne, while Cambia Río Negro is running with PRO leader Aníbal Tortoriello. Río NegroMeanwhile, in Río Negro the JSRN is expected to retain the governor office. There are 589.251 people eligible to vote in Río Negro. Together with governor and vice governor, people will vote for the 46 seats of the State Legislature, the mayors of 22 districts and authorities of 34 towns.
Source:Bueno Aires Herald
April 16, 2023 12:59 UTC