Page 10 - MONTT GROUP LATIN AMERICAN MAGAZINE JANUARY, 2020(Ingles) .pdf

Argentina: Judicial Reform and Debt Rescheduling Bill
President Alberto Fernandez achieved greater stability in the country with recent economic measures, but he knows that March is a decisive month. Hence, the Executive prepares a deep and ambitious Judicial Reform and has already sent to Congress an initiative to renegotiate the country’s millionaire liabilities.
A little more than a month after taking o ice, the President of Argentina, Alberto Fernandez, keeps the economic agents expectant. Although the country is in recession, the latest measures seem to have reassured the markets. In fact, pensions were frozen for six months, which is a relief because it represents one of the largest expenses of the Treasury. Salary negotiations were also postponed until the second quarter of this year; work is being done on the renegotiation of debt, especially with the International Monetary Fund, and severance pay was increased to reduce unemployment.
Additionally, taxes on agricultural exports were increased, and the tax scheme established by the former President, Mauricio Macri, which retained four pesos per dollar exported, was removed and a xed percentage
of nine percent per dollar was imposed. In the case of soy, the most competitive product in international markets, nine percent added to the 18 percent that was already in e ect, so the total amount that exporters will pay amounts to 27 percent. This is the main source of dollars in the country. For this reason, to take care of the currency, the Government launched a new instruction, with important administrative changes for the importation of products. In this way the authorities are requesting more and more detailed information on the dollars required for this and next year.
Although there is more tranquillity in Argentina, the general reaction will be known only with the arrival of March.
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