Argentina’s central bank has set a cap on the amount of foreign currency that the country’s banks can hold, in an effort to limit the amount of dollars they hold ahead of a devaluation expected to be implemented by President-elect Javier Melli.
According to media reports, the central bank stated that financial balances should not exceed the minimum amount recorded between October 12 and the sixth of December, according to a provision posted on the bank’s website.
The new rule would force banks to reduce the amount of dollars they keep in their wallet, according to informed sources who requested anonymity.
The Argentine peso lost more of its value on the informal market as the government announced new measures to boost its dwindling foreign currency reserves.
Many Argentines resort to converting their savings in local currency to dollars, as this is the only means of defense against rampant inflation, which jumped in 2020 to its highest level in three decades, recording 94.8 percent.
The country’s foreign currency reserve, estimated at 44 billion dollars at the beginning of the year, also fell to just over 25 billion dollars. In the first half of this year, Argentina’s trade deficit amounted to 4.4 billion dollars.
