Argentina includes IMF loan terms in executive decree

BUENOS AIRES, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Argentina's government has included the terms of its proposed loan agreement with the IMF into a Necessity and Urgency Decree, officials said Tuesday.

The decree, published in the Government Gazette, will be submitted to the National Congress for approval, according to a statement from the President's Office.

Under the decree, the agreement with the IMF falls under an Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program, which provides interest payments over a 10-year period, with a grace period of four years and six months.

While the decree does not specify the loan amount, the government emphasized its objective to bolster international reserves by enabling the Central Bank of the Argentine Republic (BCRA) to settle its debt on treasury bills.

The decree stresses the need "to reverse the situation of the international reserves" of the central bank by canceling non-transferable treasury bills.

The government said when it took office in December 2023, the central bank had a net international reserves deficit of 11.2 billion U.S. dollars. However, as of March 6, reserves had recovered by approximately 7 billion dollars.

"To ensure economic stability, it is imperative to urgently reduce a significant portion of the National State's debt to the BCRA, thereby improving its financial position and international reserves liquidity," read the decree.

Argentina's current IMF debt, estimated at around 44.5 billion dollars, originates from a 2018 Stand-By Arrangement signed amid severe capital flight and currency devaluation. In 2022, the two sides agreed to an EFF program, which officially ended last September. ■