Boudou: 'We'll work to keep on growing'

By Liliana Franco, from Washington DC.-

“We have a mature relationship with the IMF, we can sit down and express what we think,” Economy Minister Amado Boudou said referring to the current relationship between Argentina and the organization.

According to the minister, the changes in the IMF are triggered by its “leader” Dominique Strauss-Kahn, “a person who is willing to apply these transformations,” referring to the fact that the Fund is accepting that there “are no unique policies to be applied in every country.”

The assertion “Washington’s consensus has died and it will not be replaced by other,” synthesizes for the Argentine authorities the change the IMF has shown.

The official gave no importance to the doubts settled by Nicolás Eyzaguirre over Argentina’s overheating economy and monetary expansion and assured that the country will not only continue growing, but “it will keep on growing even more,” and also admitted he does not fear the inflation, but “unemployment, lack of education,” among other social issues.

The main concepts given during Boudou’s conference after the G20 meeting:

GROWTH

• “We have to accelerate the growth, not stop it”

• “There are countries that propose the generation of counter-cyclical funds and invest the money in assets. But is there is a global crisis, the assets’ value is reduced. This does not happen in Argentina because we invest in public work and in improving productivity and creating work stations.”

IPC

• “The new national IPC will replace the current one in every application.”

• In two weeks there will be a seminar where different universities which analyzed the current IPC will meet with the authorities of the Economy Ministry.

• Boudou confirmed that the recommendations of the IMF technical mission have been presented to the authorities of the Indec national statistics bureau and he will analyze them when he returns to Buenos Aires.

• The Minister said that for the elaboration of the new IPC the government will take into account the IMF recommendations and the ones given by the universities and then “based in the best concepts we will apply the national IPC.” He did not give the exact dates in which it will be launched, but said it may me difficult to apply it this year.

COMMODITIES

• Between May 19 and 20 there will be a G20 Summit in Buenos Aires where they will debate about commodities. The event will be headed by France’s Agriculture Ministry and all the agriculture ministers of the member countries will attend.

PARIS CLUB

• “We did not talk about this issue this time” – referring to the negotiations of the payment of the Paris Club debt. The minister added that “this does not mean that we don’t debate about the issue, they are in fact very positive conversations.”

• Boudou ruled out that it will be a six-year payment and ratified that Argentina “will defend its position of paying its debts.”