He Central Bank of the Argentine Republic (BCRA) announced this Thursday a new rise in the reference interest rate -for the second consecutive month-, from 78 to 81%, amid the escalation in the informal price of the dollar and the scenario of very high inflation that the country is dragging of soybeans.
The board of directors of the monetary authority decided to raise the monetary policy rate by 300 basis points, so that the annual nominal interest rate of the 28-day Liquidity Letters (Leliq), considered the reference instrument, is now located at 81%.
“Simultaneously and in pursuit of maintaining the incentive to save in pesos, he BCRA raised the minimum limits of interest rates on fixed terms of individuals, leading them to a yield of 81% nominal per year in the case of deposits of up to 10 million pesos and 72.5% nominal per year for the rest of fixed termsthe bank added in a statement.
A decision that contributes to “maintain consistency” with the level of the short term interest rates of the debt instruments of the National Treasure.
In March, Argentina registered a monthly inflation of 7.7% and 104.3% year-on-year, 1.8 percentage points more than that registered in February and a record in the last 32 years.
“The BCRA will continue to monitor the evolution of the general price level, the dynamics of the exchange market and the monetary aggregates for the purpose of calibrating its interest rate policy,” concludes the published text.
to the problem of inflation is added the constant devaluation of the peso -aggravated in recent days- in the market of informal dollar, known as ‘blue’which is sold on the black market and which is the one that in practice serves as a reference for the economy of the citizens due to the strong obstacles that, to stop the flight of foreign currency, are maintained to access the dollar in the official market.
A fragile economic scenario weighed down, in addition, by the fall in agricultural exports -the main source of dollars- due to the drought that the country is dragging down and the uncertainty generated by the proximity of the presidential elections.
Source: Gestion
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