The Argentine Republic is seemingly in a standoff with three groups of private bondholders as negotiations to restructure the country's sovereign debt hit a roadblock. Argentina has struggled with a recession over the last two years, with the country's financial problems only exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.
The standoff between Argentina and its creditors began in May when the country defaulted on its sovereign debt. The debt triggered a series of protracted negotiations between creditors and Argentina, which has yet to produce a deal. Last week, Argentina offered what the government said was the "best it could offer", a deal that has since been rejected by the country's creditors. Creditors submitted a counter proposal, but Argentina has rejected this offer and dug in on its initial offer.
"Argentina's offer is short of what the creditor groups can accept," said one of the groups of creditors.
Argentina faces three separate groups of private firms that account for a third of its total bonds. Among Argentina's creditors are BlackRock Inc. (NYSE: BLK), Fidelity Investments Inc., Monarch Alternative Capital, and Ashmore Group (OTC: AJMPF). Argentina's creditors are numerous, and now appear to be working more closely together, putting additional strain on the Argentine government.
Argentina, however, is pleading with creditors and the international community to understand the dour economic situation. The country is suffering from the effects of numerous compounding financial problems, including difficulties with decades-old debts, an ongoing recession that has ravaged the country for two years, and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Argentine President Alberto Fernández has stated that the Monday offer is the best the country can do given the current situation and hopes that creditors will understand this.
"We are not here to fight with anyone. We want to try to resolve the debt problem. We have made all the efforts that we could, but we can't do more than what we offered. It's not a whim; it's about being sensible." Said Fernández.
Argentina's creditors, however, claim that their offer includes numerous concessions. The three groups were under an agreement to refuse to tender their bonds until a better deal was struck.
"Our three groups have also signed a cooperation agreement reaffirming that Argentina's current offer falls short of a proposal that can be supported by the creditor groups," the groups said.
Argentina's current economic struggle dates as far back as the 1970s when the country was under the control of several successive military juntas. Economic progress made in the early cold war was lost during military rule; attempts to stem the declining economy by the junta were interrupted by the Falklands War with the U.K., which also added a litany of political issues to the considerable economic difficulties the country was facing. The country suffered from rampant stagflation, hyperinflation, and GDP fluctuations. Debt management has been an uphill battle, with Argentina having defaulted on its debts nine times. Significant recovery was made through the 2000s but was stopped short by a recession in 2018, which was then exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.