MILEI’S BIG APPLE

President Javier Milei’s trip to New York (formally to address the annual General Assembly of the United Nations but in real terms far more geared to rallying United States aid in dollars to ward off financial crisis) began on a high note – within two hours of his arrival on Tuesday morning, he had met his US colleague Donald Trump who called him “a truly fantastic leader … advancing Argentina at record speed” and promising “my complete and total support for his re-election.” On Wednesday US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced negotiation of a currency swap of US$20 billion with the Central Bank to bail Argentina out of crisis as well as a readiness to purchase Argentine dollar bonds “with all option on the table” but only “immediately after the elections” – announcements which sent country risk and the exchange rate plunging apart from earning Milei’s “enormous thanks.” Bessent further said that he had contacted numerous US companies who would be making important direct investments in Argentina “in the event of a positive electoral result.” Milei’s 20-minute speech to the UN General Assembly at noon Wednesday, ostensibly the reason for his presence in New York, took second place to all this – most of it was spent praising Trump with a relatively mild call for UN overhaul accompanied by a general rebuke of international bureaucracy while not forgetting to assert Argentine sovereignty over the Malvinas. Wednesday also included a friendly meeting with International Monetary Fund managing director Kristalina Georgie