The International Monetary Fund (IMF) placed the September aid tranche for Argentina on hold ahead of the country’s presidential election.
The Macri administration was expecting to receive US$5.4 billion from the international financial institution this month, a tranche that was part of the US$56.3 billion stand-by agreement signed with the IMF in mid-2018. But Argentine lawmakers only received the promise of talks in Washington D.C. on Oct. 14, just days before the presidential election.
According to the National Institute of Statistics (INDEC), poverty has skyrocketed to the record level of 35,4 percent during the first six months of 2019. This contrasts to the already high 27,3 percent accounted during the first semester of 2018, meaning that an additional 3,7 million people are now qualifying as “poor” in a year.
President Mauricio Macri, who is seeking re-election, prepares to take on leftist Alberto Fernandez in the Oct. 27 election.
Sources: EFE, La Izquierda Diario, teleSUR.
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