The head of state had, all day on Sunday, conducted consultations to find a replacement in Martin Guzman. He chose “a renowned economist”, who was Minister of the Economy in the province of Buenos Aires between 2011 and 2015.
Le Monde with AFP
This is a signal of the growing influence of the peronist (left) current in the Argentinian economic landscape. Silvina Batakis, a 53 -year -old economist, was appointed on Sunday July 3 Minister of the Economy, after the resignation of Martin Guzman. The president, Alberto Fernandez (center left), appointed Silvina Batakis, “a renowned economist”, who was Minister of the Economy in the province of Buenos Aires between 2011 and 2015, announced in the evening the spokesperson for The presidency on his Twitter account.
The Head of State had, all day on Sunday, conducted consultations to find a replacement for Martin Guzman, a great craftsman of the agreement on the restructuring of Argentine debt with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) signed in March. Mr. Guzman was praised for having avoided Argentina, the third economy of Latin America, a defect in payment on a record debt of nearly $ 45 billion towards the IMF, inheritance of a loan contracted in 2018 by the previous one Government of the Liberal Mauricio Macri.
But this supporter of a smooth return to the balanced budget, to “calm” the economy, was regularly implicated by the left wing of the Frente de Todos (“all fronts”), The peroneist fringe embodied by the always influential and popular Cristina Kirchner, vice-president of the country (and head of state from 2007 to 2015). She insistently claims a social turn, less deference for major macroeconomic balances, in a country with 37 % of poor.
Silvina Batakis was, in the important province of Buenos Aires (15 million inhabitants), the Minister of the Economy of the Governor then, Daniel Scioli, a former vice-president of the head of state Nestor Kirchner, And therefore close to his wife, Cristina. The appointment of Batakis appears as such as a signal of the growing weight of the Kirchnerist camp in the coalition of center left in power in Buenos Aires, a year and a half of the presidential election.
“A worker Tireless “
In recent years, M Batakis has been secretary in charge of the provinces, within the Ministry of the Interior, responsible in particular for the delicate articulation of public policies between State and Provinces – Argentina is A federal state – in terms of resource and security allocation. Daniel Scioli, another Kirchnerist who has recently joined the Government, at the Ministry of Productive Development, praised in him “a person of great human quality and in -depth professional training. A tireless worker with a great sense of responsibility and a remarkable experience “.
Poverty “is fighting with a state that plans and intervenes, and with a company which imposes it as a social purpose”, displays the reception of the Twitter account of M me Batakis, which puts In front of the social fiber of the new minister, a graduate of public finances and environmental economics. And, incidentally a fan of football, of boca juniors.
Change of head or macroeconomic CAP? Market reaction on Monday should be scrutinized, such as the exchange rate on rue du Dollar against Peso (239 pesos for 1 dollar, compared to 130 at the official rate). The peso has constantly weakened for a year, despite the agreement with the IMF, and post-Cavid growth found (+ 10.3 % in 2021).
A question also concerns his attitude towards the IMF, for whom “Guzman was a lesser evil”, summed up for AFP the political analyst Carlos Fara. However, Cristina Kirchner has never hidden her reluctance for an agreement on debt. And if the Minister changes, the terms of the debt agreement remain: the budgetary balance by 2025 (against a deficit of 3 % of GDP in 2021), and the reduction of subsidies.
Silvina Batakis will also be quickly, from the June index expected in fifteen days, faced with stubborn inflation, which was right for its predecessor: 29.3 % since the start of the year, 60, 7 % over the last twelve months. One of the first commitments of the new minister could be a meeting with the creditors of the Paris club – another debt that Martin Guzman had managed to renegotiate – meeting which was this week at the agenda of the outgoing minister.