The Minister of Production, Francisco Cabrera, and the Minister of Finance, Luis Caputo, met with businessmen of the Argentine Business Association (AEA, for its acronym in Spanish). The meeting took place this morning at the building of the Ministry of Treasury.

The meeting was attended by: Jaime Campos, President of AEA; Marcelo Argüelles (SIDUS); Jorge Aufiero (Medicus); Carlos Blaquier (Ledesma); Federico Braun (La Anónima); Alejandro Bulgheroni (PAE); José Cartellone (Jose Cartellone Construcciones Civiles); Eduardo Constantini, (Consultatio); Alfredo Coto (Coto); Enrique Cristofani (Santander Río); Renato Fernández Baeza (Cencosud); Julio Figueroa (Citi); Alberto Hojman (BGH); Luis María Macchiavello (Droguerías del Sur); Santiago Mignone (PWC); Carlos Miguens (Grupo Miguens); Cristiano Rattazzi (FCA); Kurt Soland (Bayer); and Amadeo Vázquez. Both Ministers shared the Government’s vision on the measures and economic decisions made during the past weeks and they also talked about the negotiations with the IMF.

Campos, President of AEA, said: “This possibility the Government gives us to dialogue and listen to each other is very important. We are going to overcome this situation. It will get us stronger”.

Regarding the negotiations with the IMF, he said: “The Government anticipated itself and it is the best way to finish with this exchange issue. We are calm; it is a short exchange crisis. The Government is handling very well this situation”, he added.

In addition, Rattazzi (FCA), said: “I am satisfied with the decision of sorting to the IMF. We have recently presented a new car produced in Argentina, which will contribute to the increase of exports in the sector. The activity will continue as usual this year”.

Bulgheroni, of PAE, said: “It is very positive to see that the Government is working with precaution. It is the way a businessman wants a Government to work”. Regarding the firm’s investment, he said: “We continue executing our investments and we maintain our projects. Nothing changes”.

Cristofani, of Santander Río, said: “It is an exchange issue. It has nothing to do with the situation in 2001. There is not a debt crisis”. Regarding consumption, he added: “We analyze the consumption with credit cards and the evolution is positive for 20 points. We analyze the loans to individuals and they are at the same level than in previous months”.

The Minister of Production, Francisco Cabrera, and the Minister of Finance, Luis Caputo, met with businessmen of the Argentine Institute for Business Development (IDEA, for its acronym in Spanish). The meeting took place this morning at the building of the Ministry of Treasury.

The meeting was attended by: Javier Goñi, President of IDEA and representative of Ledesma, Gastón Remy, 1st Vice President of IDEA and representative of Vista Oil & Gas, and Gabriel Martino, 2nd Vice President of IDEA and representative of the bank HSBC. It was also atended by: Roberto Alexander (IBM), Diego Bekerman (Microsoft), Fernando Cinalli (S+R Consultores), Fernando Coccaro (E&Y), Hernan Dietrich (Grupo Dietrich), Nestor García (KPMG), Ignacio Gonzalez García (La Nación), Fabián Kon, (Banco Galicia), Teófilo Lacroze (Shell), Santiago Mignone (PWC), Marcelo Meller (Motomel), Diego Ordoñez (Dow), Federico Rava (Telefónica), Claudio Rodriguez (Sinteplast), Silvia Tenazinha (Almundo), David Uriburu (Grupo Techint), and Juan Manuel Vaquer (Dupont).

Both Ministers shared the Government’s vision on the economy and the productive sectors and they also talked about the negotiations with the IMF.

“The meeting was positive. The goal of this type of meetings is to inform the private sector about the measures our government is taking and to keep working together for the growth of our country”, Cabrera said.
“We want to bring certainty and foreseeability to businessmen. We are working to clear the horizon and continue in the path the country needs: the path of growth and creation of jobs”, Caputo added.

Javier Goñi, President of IDEA, said: “It is crucial for the Government to have spaces of dialogue and to listen to the business sector. From IDEA we want the best for the country and we aim to contribute to Argentina’s economic growth. The Government has given us certainty regarding the decisions taken. We are going to continue with the investment and development projects”.

Gastón Remy added: “The Government has given us certainty and calm; there is no need to bring ghosts from the past, we have to work together in this cultural change of long-term vision for growth, we have to keep transforming ourselves and we have to think in a competitive country with insertion into the world”.

Gabriel Martino said: “We have to remove the drama of a potential agreement with the IMF. Countries such as Colombia, Mexico and Brazil have entered into this type of agreements. The agreement is a guarantee, a reassurance for times of market volatility”.

The Board of Governors of the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) yesterday confirmed Argentina as host for the 59th meeting to be held during the second half of April 2019. The decision was made yesterday at the 58th Ordinary Board of Governors Meeting held in the Dominican Republic between April 26 and 27.

The Minister of Finance, Luis Caputo, said that “Argentina hosting the next CABEI Board of Governors Meeting is a clear sign of the international community’s confidence in the changes the country is implementing”. In addition, he welcomed the support of the bank to Argentina with the financing of projects for 170 million dollars related to scientific research, public works, health and education.

This is the most important event of the CABEI where high-impact decisions that have positive consequences on the socio-economic development of the citizens of member countries are made.

The Board of Governors is the highest authority of the Bank and, according to the CABEI Constitutive Agreement, it is held once a year. Each member country is represented by one governor and one alternate governor, who may be the Minister of Economy, the Minister of Finance, Public Credit, the President of the Central Bank, or the corresponding official that conducts the representation according to the domestic rules of each country.

The next meeting, to be held in April 2019 in Argentina, will be attended by authorities of member countries and leaders from the regional private sector. The last time this event took place in Argentina was in March 2006 in San Carlos de Bariloche, Province of Río Negro.

The CABEI is a multilateral financial institution created in 1960 to promote the integration and development of its founding members. Over the years, the institution has incorporated new regional and extra-regional partners, including Argentina since the approval of the Bank’s Constitutive Agreement in 1994.