The United States announces a trade and investment agreement with Argentina world

The White House also announced similar agreements with Ecuador, Guatemala and El Salvador. The United States imposes a 10% tax on Argentina, as well as El Salvador and Guatemala. Products from Ecuador have a 15% tariff.

The agreement with Argentina represents a boost for the South American country led by President Javier Miley, an ideological ally of Donald Trump. “Countries will open their markets to each other for key products,” the text published by the Trump administration continued, adding that Argentina would be granted “preferential market access for exports of US goods,” including some medicines, chemicals, machinery, information technology products, and medical devices.

The United States also stated that Argentina is opening its market to live US livestock and will allow access to the US poultry market within a year.

Miley’s government has also committed to not restricting market access for products using dairy products – such as cheese – and meat. Argentina will also simplify product registration processes for U.S. beef, offal, and pork products and will not require domestic facility registration for U.S. dairy imports.

The statement added, “The United States and Argentina will work quickly to finalize the text of the agreement for signing and comply with their respective internal procedures before it enters into force.”

Miley hailed his country’s first bilateral trade deal with the United States in nearly a decade as “great news.” “As you can see, we are deeply committed to making Argentina great again,” he said.

Argentina will also accept imports of vehicles manufactured in the United States that meet US federal vehicle safety and emissions standards, according to an anonymous official in Washington connected to the matter.

The agreement is part of Trump’s larger bet on Argentina, after the United States rushed to provide $20 billion in financing and bought the peso outright last month in an attempt to stem the currency’s devaluation and help Miley’s party ahead of the October 26 midterm elections.

It also represents a political victory for Milley, who has positioned herself as one of Trump’s key allies on the world stage.

“It is quite clear that the US Trump government’s strategy with regard to Argentina is to strengthen the US presence in the region while reducing China’s influence,” Argentine political analyst Sergio Bernstein told Valor. “The relationship between the United States and Argentina, which has historical roots, tends to be further strengthened now, for geopolitical and ideological reasons,” he said.

The agreements also include “efforts to reduce non-tariff barriers and reduce tariffs to zero” on products made in the United States, as well as commitments not to impose taxes on digital services on US companies. There will also be relief in customs duties on selected products from these countries.

The White House announcement came on the same day the International Monetary Fund warned the Argentine government to take action to rebuild the country’s international reserves, one of the points of a US$20 billion agreement with the institution.

“In our discussion with the (Argentine) authorities, we emphasized the need to accelerate reserve accumulation efforts to help better manage volatility and boost market confidence,” IMF spokeswoman Julie Kozak said at a press conference.

It also became clear yesterday that the United States used part of its reserves at the International Monetary Fund before paying a crucial debt to Argentina, which received an equivalent amount in that period, transactions that analysts attributed to Washington’s efforts to strengthen Miley’s government.

U.S. Special Drawing Rights at the International Monetary Fund, money that can be used to repay debt or be exchanged for dollars, euros and other currencies, fell by $870 million last month, according to calculations by Britain’s Financial Times.

Argentina’s Special Drawing Rights account in the Fund increased by the same amount during this period, which happened before the $840 million payment to the IMF was due on November 1. Neither Argentina nor the United States have confirmed the occurrence of this deal.

Economist and founder of Argentine consulting firm Perspectiv@s, Luis Seco, sees US financial support for Argentina as welcome in the market, but Casa Rosada must avoid over-reliance, which may indicate the government’s inability to attract foreign currency by creating confidence. “Transparency, in these cases, is highly desirable,” he said. (In collaboration with Roberto Lamirinhas)