Argentina, IMF och Lagarde

Argentina struggles to avoid economic collapse

To secure final approval from the IMF board this month for the latest $7.5bn instalment of a $44bn bailout package. 

Few believe the IMF is ready to pull the plug on Argentina, its largest debtor, so the fresh money will probably come.

Financial Times 15 August 2023

https://www.ft.com/content/4171ee2c-a647-47db-a208-7ead73e88b5e

“extend and pretend” 

When banks have non-performing loans, they sometimes don’t want to admit it. So instead of calling it a loss, because the debtor can’t pay, they simply rewrite the contract so that it has been extended. 

This way the debtor is not technically behind in payments and the creditor can pretend that the corresponding debt on their books is worth something. 

It’s called extend and pretend, and it’s not new.

IMF’s record-breaking rescue package for Argentina, with which its outgoing director Christine Lagarde was closely associated.

The fund has an unhappy history with Argentina, having agreed more than 20 programmes, most of which ended in failure. 

The latest chapter started with a $50bn bailout in June 2018, increased by $7bn three months later 

https://englundmacro.blogspot.com/2019/08/argentinas-48-stock-rout.html