Argentina defers payments to Paris Club until 2024, renegotiates term and rate

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Argentina decided to defer debt payments with the Paris Club until September 2024, the government said on Tuesday, May 31, through the official gazette, while renegotiating the understanding to cancel some US$2 billion with a longer-term and lower interest rate.

The South American country restructured debt with private creditors in 2020, reaching an ‘Extended Facilities’ agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) last March, so it is now moving forward in closing the renegotiation process with the Paris Club.

It provides for “the deferral of the payments of the debts contracted under the ‘Bilateral Agreements’ subscribed with the countries nucleated in the Paris Club, until a new framework agreement exists,” replacing the joint statement subscribed in May 2014″, said the official bulletin.

The objective of the administration of President Alberto Fernández is to reach a renegotiation before June 30, based on the deadline set during the last visit of the Minister of Economy, Martín Guzmán, to Paris.

New conditions will be sought regarding interest rates, terms, and the incorporation of the US$430 million already paid in two payments in July 2021 and February 2022.

The decree formalizes the regulatory time to work on the negotiations and establishes that Argentina defers payments until the ninth month of 2024 or until a new agreement with the Paris Club, whichever comes first.

With information from Reuters