Argentine government achieves successful debt swap for more than US$16 billion 

The Argentine government on Tuesday successfully completed a debt swap for around $3 trillion (about US$16.813 billion), managing to extend large maturities that were scheduled for the first quarter of the year, reported the Ministry of Economy in a statement.

The economic portfolio exchanged almost 70% of the instruments that expire within the first three months of 2023 for a basket of titles that will expire between next April and February 2024.

In the first quarter, the maturity of some $4.3 trillion (US$24.099 billion) was expected, distributed in $1.1 trillion (US$6.164 billion) in January; $1.2 trillion in February (US$6.725 billion) and $2 trillion (US$1.208 billion) in March.

After the financial operation on Tuesday, the maturities were reduced to a total of $1.4 trillion (US$7.846 billion), the official communication detailed.

The operation in the local market consisted of the conversion of eight debt titles, between Letters and Treasury Bonds in pesos, four of them tied to inflationary evolution, for two new baskets of instruments that include Letters that will mature between the next 28 April and June 2023.

Likewise, the Executive offered three National Bonds in dual currency (pesos and dollars) that will mature between July 2023 and February 2024 and another inflation-adjusted Letter that will expire next June.

The Argentine government carries out debt swap operations with the objective of refinancing commitments in the midst of its lack of access to the international credit market.

In turn, the Executive seeks, through these mechanisms, to absorb liquidity within the domestic market to avoid further pressure on the exchange rate.

According to the state news agency Télam, until October last year, the Argentine State debt amounted to US$381.684 billion.

With information from Xinhua