The price of the dollar Contado Con Liqui (CCL) — one of the most used modalities in the Argentine financial market — was boosted by the expectation of the meeting between the Argentine government and members of the IMF
By Roberto Lameirinhas, Valor—São Paulo
Members of the government of Argentine President Javier Milei met yesterday in Buenos Aires with a team from the Monetary Fund (IMF) in Buenos Aires to renegotiate the country's debt with the entity. No practical results were announced, despite Argentina's urgency in obtaining resources to pay external commitments that expire in the coming days and the growing pressure for further devaluation of the peso.
Government and Fund committed to maintaining negotiations in search of an agreement. Tomorrow, for example, the debt of US$ 16 billion relating to compensation for the reestablishment of the state-owned oil company YPF is due, but the central bank has no reserves for this payment. Argentina also needs to pay US$ 1 billion in interest on its debt to external investors.
Argentines hope to reach an agreement with the IMF that will unlock a disbursement of US$$ 3.3 billion dollars. This disbursement was originally scheduled for November, but the change of government delayed negotiations.
Meanwhile, the price of dollar types used in financial operations in Argentina registered a significant new increase yesterday, an indication of increasing exchange rate pressure.
“The financial dollar quotes represent real economy prices,” said a source linked to foreign companies that trade with Argentina. “This means that there is increasing suspicion that the difference between the official exchange rate and the real value of the dollar will rise again in the coming weeks, with the increase in monetary pressures,” said the source. “In other words, the devaluation of the peso at the official exchange rate adopted on the first day of the new government was insufficient and is holding back the value of the dollar.”
“This loss of confidence could be one of the reasons for the increase in financial dollars, such as the CCL and MEP”, said Nicolás Alonzo, an economist at the consulting firm Orlando J. Ferrerés & Asociados. “But it is necessary to take into account that the market demand for dollars will grow again from now on — which will put pressure on the dollar exchange rate and prices in general,” he said.
The CCL dollar surpassed 1,200 pesos yesterday for the first time, increasing Friday's price by 5.3%, when it had already broken its nominal record. The dollar MEP increased to 1,141 pesos, 3.3% more than the previous close. The official exchange rate is quoted at 833.5 pesos, 0.2% more than Friday's value. (With international agencies)
SOURCE: https://valor.globo.com/mundo/noticia/2024/01/08/cotacao-de-dolares-financeiros-na-argentina-bate-recorde.ghtml
