Wall Street Investors Consider the $libra Case to Be Just an Anecdote

With signals coming from the Congress and the recent trip of the official delegation to the United States, investors quickly left behind the controversy caused by the opposition a week ago over the $LIBRA cryptocurrency case.

Bank of America (BofA) organized an "Argentina Day" that, in reality, extended over two days. The event made it clear that the market maintains its bet on Javier Milei's Government, and most attendees considered that the new crypto case will remain an anecdote.

One of the people responsible for the meeting was Claudio Irigoyen, former economist of the Central Bank and current head of global economic research at BofA. Executives from several publicly traded companies, such as Banco Macro, Cresud, Edenor, and Genneia, also attended the corporate headquarters of the entity at One Bryant Park. Before them, the director of Poliarquía, Alejandro Catterberg, presented his vision of the economic outlook.

Argentine stocks started the day with declines on Wall Street, but then rebounded and closed with gains of up to 4.5%. Energy companies, such as YPF and Vista, led the increases, driven by buy recommendations, like the one made by the investment bank BTG Pactual.

The entity highlighted the potential of the energy sector in the country and set a target price for these assets that exceeds their current values by more than 20%.

Positive signals

The consultancy 1816 emphasized that, beyond the commotion caused by $LIBRA, macroeconomic indicators continue to provide favorable signals: January's inflation was 2.2%, the lowest since 2020; Milei's Government achieved financial surplus again in the first month of the year; and the positive balance in foreign trade was maintained.

Additionally, the votes in the Senate showed that the president did not have to cede governability despite the controversy caused by the opposition. A key point was the failure of the investigative commission that was intended to be formed, as it was rejected by almost all non-Kirchnerist blocs, including part of the radicalism.

Another relevant fact is that, as Milei's Government sought, the suspension of the PASO became law after the vote in the Upper House. This represents a crucial step to clear the political scenario ahead of the October legislative elections, avoiding intermediate voting instances that usually generate market volatility.

Meanwhile, most opinion polls reflect that support for President Milei was not affected after the cryptocurrency case. In general, voters are more focused on macroeconomic results than on a controversy driven by Kirchnerism.

This popular support is a factor that Wall Street closely follows, as it provides the president with a shield against political attacks.