The US is planning to extend a $20 billion loan to Argentina in support to President Javier Milei.
Following a meeting on Tuesday last week on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, US President Donald Trump described his Argentinian counterpart, Javier Milei, as a “truly fantastic and powerful leader”.
He told reporters, “I’m doing something I don’t often do … I’m giving my full endorsement to him.” The next day, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that he was “working in close coordination” with President Milei and would “do what is necessary” to support Argentina’s economy.
Bessent’s pledge came after Argentine bond prices plunged sharply last week, as investors watched the country’s central bank rapidly burn through its scant foreign currency reserves to defend the falling peso.
On Tuesday this week, the currency fell by more than 6 percent – its biggest drop within a single day since September 8, forcing the government to sell yet more dollars in the spot market to shore it back up.
A maverick outsider, Milei secured a surprise election win in 2023 by promising to tame runaway
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