The Minister of Economy, Sergio Massa, achievement this Thursday in Washington his commitment to receive “fresh money” from multilateral organizations of credit by signing a US$ 200 million loan from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
The loan was granted a day before Massa meets with the deputy director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Gita Gopinath, He warned that the program signed between the Government and that body should serve to reduce inflation progressively, and the need to reduce subsidies.
Massa obtained a commitment from the IMF at the end of March to lower the net payments that the country must make to that organization from US$4 billion to US$1.9 billion, among other things, due to the persistent drought that is affecting exports. But he failed to reduce the fiscal deficit target of 1.9% of GDP, from 2.5% last year.
Within this framework, Massa will participate between today and tomorrow in Washington in the Spring meeting (of the northern hemisphere) of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The minister signed with the IDB representatives a loan for US$ 200 million that will finance improvements in the Argentine health system. This is the first individual operation of a US$ 600 million conditional credit line for investment projects (CCLIP).
Those dollars will go to the reserves of the Central Bank (BCRA), which will transform them into pesos, and with this actions will be financed to reduce premature mortality and close the gaps in access to health services between jurisdictions in the country.
The BCRA’s foreign assets fell by US$5.5 billion between January and March, despite the withdrawal of US$5.4 billion from the Fund. It was the biggest loss since 2006, when the debt with the agency was paid. Only for the sale of dollars, the BCRA reserves decreased by US$ 3,000 million, the rest was payment of private bond debts and loans to multilateral organizations.