An economy minister wrestles with inflation nearing 100%
Save time by listening to our audio articles as you multitaskAt the root of the current instability is a weak and divided Peronist government. Alberto Fernández, the president, owes his job to the decision by Cristina Fernández de Kirchner , Peronism’s most powerful figure, to pick him as the Peronist candidate and to run herself to be his vice-president. They inherited an economy that their conservative predecessor, Mauricio Macri, had tried, but failed, to fix.
The Fernándezes reluctantly turned to Sergio Massa, a third important figure in Peronism, who moved from presiding over the lower house of Congress to heading a beefed up economy ministry. He has brought some calm, albeit not much. His aims, he told Bello in his office in Buenos Aires, are to get inflation down both by cutting the fiscal deficit and by building confidence in the peso with a trade surplus and foreign reserves.
The biggest of those dangers is political. Ms Fernández tweeted that the government should do more to moderate food prices; her son, Máximo, a congressman, sniped at the “soya dollar”. Yet Ms Fernández must know that Mr Massa is the only thing standing between Argentina and chaos. The country faces a general election in a year, which the opposition is widely expected to win.
Mr Massa is a rival as well as an ally. Aged 50, he is widely thought to have presidential ambitions. He harks back to the conservative strand in Peronism that governed in the 1990s under Carlos Menem but was then marginalised by Ms Fernández’s leftist populism. Fail, and he will be simply a footnote in the government’s wider failure. Do too well, and Ms Fernández may cut him down. But Mr Massa at least has a modest opportunity to slow the deterioration in Argentina’s plight.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Down's syndrome: Boys take on 100-mile charity challenge for brotherTheir mum says they wanted to help the Bingley-based charity that supports the family.
Read more »
BBC at 100: National broadcaster reveals list of Yorkshire filming locations which have shaped its historyThe BBC has released a new map highlighting the places and people that have shaped the national broadcaster during its 100-year history.
Read more »
Plea for support as more than 100 takeaways forced to close over three monthsThe closures are down to increased costs of energy and food as well as VAT increases
Read more »