High Temperatures & more – 3rd Aug 2023

¡Buenos días from The Springs! This is the Rorshok Argentina Update from the 3rd of August twenty twenty-three A quick summary of what's going down in Argentina.

This week, the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires is experiencing an unusual temperature surge. With maximum temperatures reaching twenty-seven degrees Celsius in the midst of winter, we’ve seen a record high for the 1st of August. This rise in temperature is due to persistent northward winds, only a couple of weeks after that polar-cold wave we’ve talked about in previous episodes.

According to experts, the “mini spring” will be short-lived, as temperatures are expected to return to more typical winter values on Sunday the 6th. However, this heat in the middle of winter, combined with the extreme temperatures the Northern Hemisphere is experiencing, has everyone worried about the possibility of a hellish summer this December and beyond. We have no way of knowing yet, as those projections will come in October at the earliest.

Speaking of heat, things got heated this weekend in the Chubut province. The National Senator Ignacio Nacho Torres was elected as Governor, ending two decades of Peronism in the province. At just thirty-five years old and representing the Juntos por el Cambio or Together for Change coalition, Torres received support from both presidential hopefuls, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta and Patricia Bullrich.

Throughout his campaign, he pledged to prioritize budget implementation and cut unnecessary expenses from political leaders, redirecting those funds towards education initiatives.

Since we mentioned education, a recent article in the Buenos Aires Times highlights how small-scale solar projects, including those in schools like the Antonio Devoto High School, are playing a crucial role in driving Argentina’s energy transition. The school took the lead by installing 200 solar panels on its rooftop, making it the first in the country to generate its electricity and even supply surplus power to the grid.

If you want to know more about the state of renewable energy in the city, follow the link in the show notes.

From renewable energy to oil gas, the final hearing of the trial to determine Argentina’s payment to Burford Capital in the YPF expropriation case was held in New York. Some context in case you’re not familiar: in nineteen ninety-nine the government privatized YPF — which was a state-owned company at the time — by conducting an auction of shares to private investors, where the Spanish multinational Repsol emerged as the winning bidder.

The Argentine government retained a minority stake in YPF, but it was no longer the controlling shareholder after the privatization. However, in twenty twelve, the expropriation occurred. The now-VP and then-president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner took back control of YPF by nationalizing half the company’s shares, effectively reclaiming the majority stake that had been sold in nineteen ninety-nine.

Now, Argentina will have to pay between five and sixteen billion dollars to the minority shareholders that were affected by the expropriation. The final number will be decided by Judge Loretta Preska based on the two elements discussed during the hearing: the interest rate and the date that will be used as reference points to calculate the payout.

Regarding payments, Economy Minister Sergio Massa announced on Monday the 31st that Argentina will fulfill its July obligations to the International Monetary Fund. To do so, he’ll employ two measures: extending the currency swap arrangement with China and utilizing a loan from the Development Bank of Latin America to meet Argentina’s financial commitments.

Also regarding the Economy Minister, business associations rejected the new economic measures. As you may recall, the government announced new taxes last week, which range from seven point five percent for goods, to twenty-five percent for services.

The Argentine Business Association, which represents the country’s largest companies, expressed their concerns about the new measures, saying they will increase the tax burden and could impact the competitiveness of exports. The thing is, there’s a lot of uncertainty about which sectors will be exempt from the tax. Initially, it was announced that the products and services affected would be fuel, healthcare, and the basic food basket, but it's unclear how the list will be divided – by companies, sectors, or products. Also, no one knows if it might overlap with Fair Prices, a government initiative to control and stabilize the prices of essential goods.

Cadiem, a business chamber importing medical equipment, wrote a letter to the Economy Ministry seeking clarifications. Meanwhile, experts in foreign trade mentioned that they’ve been facing challenges as they wait for Argentina’s Tax Bureau AFIP to update its systems

In other economic news, the winter break has come to an end, but it was a great one for the tourism industry. Setting a record with over 5.5 million tourists, including 600,000 international travelers, the winter holidays generated an economic impact of over 400 million dollars. Notably, the flagship carrier Aerolíneas Argentinas experienced a surge in passenger numbers, transporting fifteen percent more passengers than in twenty nineteen. The overall economic impact was more than fifty percent higher than in twenty twenty-two.

Those who wrapped up their holidays and headed back to the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires were welcomed back with increases in bus and train fares. Starting the 1st of August, there was an increase of almost six percent, following the inflation rate reported in June. As a result, the minimum bus ticket now costs between fifty-three and seventy-three pesos (between ten and thirteen US cents according to the parallel dollar exchange rate) depending on the line, while train tickets vary between twenty-six and thirty-three pesos (five or six cents.)

But who wants to travel across the city when you can travel to space? Bill Nelson, The former astronaut and current Administrator of NASA, arrived last week in Buenos Aires, where he said that an Argentine astronaut may soon travel to the International Space Station. During his visit to the Teófilo Tabanera Space Center in Córdoba, he praised Argentina’s satellite missions and the development of small SARE satellites to be launched by Argentine rockets Tronador II and Tronador III.

Nelson also met with President Alberto Fernández and signed agreements to add Argentina to the Artemis Agreement, enabling collaboration in space exploration, particularly on missions to the Moon and Mars.

On that note about reaching for the stars, the Buenos Aires Herald published a feature on ​​La Fanfarria del Capitán, the Argentine band that played at the Glastonbury Festival this year. Formed in Buenos Aires in two thousand five, the band blends Balkan folk and rock with ska and Latin rhythms. Their international breakthrough came when their song The Flower and the Book (La Flor y el Libro) was featured in two episodes of the popular Spanish Netflix series, Money Heist or La Casa de Papel, making it onto the show’s soundtrack and gaining them a global audience.

Follow the link in the show notes if you want to learn more.

Speaking of news outlets, The Washington Post reported that the football club Boca Juniors warmly welcomed its new signing, Edinson Cavani, in front of tens of thousands of fans at the Bombonera Stadium in Buenos Aires. The veteran Uruguayan striker, visibly emotional amidst the cheers, is seen as a key addition to Boca Juniors’ pursuit of the Copa Libertadores title.

If you’re not familiar with it, the Copa Libertadores is an annual football club competition in South America, considered one of the most prestigious tournaments in the region. It is organized by the South American Football Confederation, also known as CONMEBOL, and features the top football clubs from various South American countries. We are now in the knock-out stages of the competition, and there are four clubs from Argentina still in the running: River Plate, Boca Juniors, Argentinos Juniors, and Racing Club.

Since we are on the topic of knock-outs, Sweden beat Argentina at the FIFA Women’s World Cup, which means the national team won’t make it to the knock-out stage. With just one point and finishing at the bottom of the group, Argentina’s journey in the tournament comes to an end — much to the disappointment of forward Estefanía Banini, who during a press interview encouraged Argentine clubs to keep investing in women’s football.

Aaaaand that’s it for this week! Thanks for joining us!

Do you want to know more about us? Head over to our website with the link in our show notes. Over there you can also check out how to contact and support us.

¡Nos vemos la próxima semana!