1. IMF arrived to Argentina and Minister of Economy presented in Congress the process of restoring the Sustainability of the External Public Debt

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) entourage, led by Julie Kozak, the Western Hemisphere Department’s deputy director, and Luis Cubeddu, the IMF’s mission chief for Argentina, arrived to the country and will stay for a week, after extending the originally planned two-day trip. During the visit, the team will meet with officials from the Ministry of Economy, the Central Bank, and other government economic institutions, according to Fund sources. The minister of economy Martin Guzman, meanwhile, spoke on Wednesday in the Chamber of Deputies about the process of restoring the sustainability of the external public debt, with a review of its formation and the points to be taken into account at the time of renegotiation.

Perfil: Las 10 definiciones de Martín Guzmán en el Congreso

2. Jair Bolsonaro proposed Alberto Fernández to meet on March 1^st in Montevideo

The Foreign Minister Felipe Solá made the first tangible approach between Jair Bolsonaro and the government of Alberto Fernández in Brasilia on Wednesday. Solá met with his Brazilian counterpart, Ernesto Araújo, and then had a 50-minute meeting with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who proposed a meeting with Alberto Fernández on March 1^st in Montevideo as part of Luis Lacalle Pou’s presidential inauguration ceremony. However, President Alberto Fernandez declared in an interview that he will not be able to attend Lacalle Pou’s assumption due to the opening of the ordinary sessions in the congress.

Infobae: Jair Bolsonaro le propuso a Alberto Fernández reunirse el 1° de marzo en Montevideo

3. Reprofiling the AF20 Dual Bond

The government made official its decision to postpone payment of the AF20 dual bond principal due date until September 30^th, while continuing to pay the interest already accrued. President Alberto Fernandez made this decision through the Decree 141/2020 published this Wednesday in the Official Gazette with the signature of the full Cabinet Ministers. According to official sources, resolving the current situation of macroeconomic inconsistency requires debt policies as part of a comprehensive program to restore the sustainability of public debt and recover a sustainable growth path. It is also noted that the official intention remains to achieve normalization of the local market for public debt in pesos, after its disruption following the deferral of payments of the Treasury bills mandated by the Macrismo in August 2019.

El Economista: Bono Dual: no pagarán intereses hasta el 30-S

4. The Government introduced the “Alternative Capitals” Bill

On Thursday, the Government submitted to Congress a bill that seeks to declare 24 cities “alternative capitals” for the next four years. The initiative aims to expedite a federal scheme of meetings in the provinces between local and national officials. The proposed districts are La Matanza and General Pueyrredón (Buenos Aires), Rosario (Santa Fe), Río Cuarto (Córdoba), Bariloche (Río Negro), Comodoro Rivadavia (Chubut), Concordia (Entre Ríos), Orán (Salta), Río Grande (Tierra del Fuego), General Pico (La Pampa), Guaymallén (Mendoza) and the capitals of Formosa and San Luis, among others.

El Cronista: Capitales alternas: cuáles serán las premiadas por el gobierno en cada provincia

5. Inflation reaches 2.3% in January

The Argentine Statistical Agency (INDEC) published figures of its Consumer Price Index. As regards January, the official figure of inflation was 2.3%. The division Recreation and Culture showed the greatest monthly variation (5%), followed by food and Beverages (4.7%). Those that fell the most were Health (-2%) and Household equipment and maintenance (-1.3%). In addition, the director of Indec, Marco Lavagna, said today: “we have worked seriously, and I kept the same team as the previous management”.

Ámbito Financiero: La inflación de enero se desaceleró a 2,3%, la más baja desde julio