The Central Bank of the Argentine Republic (BCRA) received a disbursement of USD 12 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) this Tuesday, which brought the gross reserves to a total of USD 36.799 billion, according to the monetary entity.
On the second day of operation of the new exchange rate scheme of floating within bands, the exchange rate remained stable around $1,200, located at the center of the free fluctuation range. The BCRA once again stayed out of the market without intervening.
This disbursement for the Government of Javier Milei is part of the new agreement approved last Friday, through which Argentina currently concentrates about 50% of the total credits granted by the IMF worldwide.
With the approval of the program, the IMF transferred 60% of the total agreed amount, which amounts to USD 20 billion, in a first currency transfer. The Ministry of Economy committed to using these funds to repurchase Non-Transferable Letters held by the Central Bank, with the aim of improving its balance sheet.
These are titles issued in dollars, but with a market value lower than their nominal value. According to private estimates, the stock of this type of instruments reaches USD 70 billion.
The plan outlined with the Fund foresees that, in a period considered as "immediate"—less than 60 days—, in addition to the USD 12 billion from the IMF, the country will receive another USD 1.5 billion from multilateral organizations such as the World Bank, the IDB, and the CAF, which also committed financial support. This will be added to an expansion of the Repo loan granted by international banks to the BCRA, for an additional amount of USD 2 billion.
Javier Milei y Luis Caputo.
"With the immediate recapitalization of the Central Bank thanks to the funds from the agreement, although the reserve accumulation target could be considered demanding (given that there are adjusters from international organizations and the IMF disbursements are not considered), the entity's firepower is strongly reinforced. Even more so, entering the thick harvest season," concluded a report from Fundación Capital.
