Economy
From The Report: Argentina 2018
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Following the inauguration of President Mauricio Macri’s centre-right government in December 2015, the Argentine economy has embarked on a period of structural change propelled by increasingly liberalised policies. Under this leadership, the authorities have been rolling out various reforms to bring the country back onto the global stage, step up international competitiveness and accelerate GDP growth. After the 1.8% contraction in 2016, Argentina’s GDP expanded by 2.9% in 2017. Growth continued to accelerate in the first quarter of 2018 at a rate of 3.6% year-on-year (y-o-y), according to the National Institute of Statistics and Census. This chapter contains interviews with Daniel Funes de Rioja, B20 Chair; Mariano Mayer, Secretary of Entrepreneurship and Small and Medium Enterprises; and Luis Pagani, CEO, Arcor.

See also:

Special Report: Argentina 2018 : Córdoba

 

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Mixed review: GDP growth, trade and credit make progress on the back of an increasingly open and liberalised market
OBG
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Following the inauguration of President Mauricio Macri’s centre-right government in December 2015, the Argentine economy has embarked on a period of structural change propelled by increasingly liberalised policies. Under this leadership, the authorities have been rolling out various reforms to bring the country back onto the global stage, step up international competitiveness and accelerate GDP growth. However, the nation has faced a number of obstacles, including a recession in 2016, when there…

Interview

Catalyst for change: Daniel Funes de Rioja, B20 Chair, on building investor trust through the G20 presidency and adapting the labour market
OBG
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Interview :Daniel Funes de Rioja How might the G20 and B20 presidency help build trust in Argentina’s long-term growth stability? DANIEL FUNES DE RIOJA: The G20 and the B20 are going to be extremely important in both the domestic and international communities. In the end, Argentina will be reliable when stable long-term policies are in place and our society perceives globalisation and being an important part of the world as necessary. Due to our history, with highly variable movements on…

Analysis

Policy revision: Cambiemos coalition’s October 2017 win to facilitate President Mauricio Macri’s liberalisation agenda
OBG
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Since taking office in December 2015 President Mauricio Macri has implemented sweeping reforms to improve the Argentine economy, incentivise private sector development and increase investor confidence. However, after 15 years of interventionist policies some lawmakers and segments of the population have protested these efforts. The landmark win of President Macri’s Cambiemos (Let’s Change) coalition in the October 2017 elections has turned the majority of the legislature – previously dominated…

Interview

Small firms, big plans: Mariano Mayer, Secretary of Entrepreneurship and Small and Medium Enterprises, on bolstering competitiveness
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Interview :Mariano Mayer What steps have been taken to make small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) competitive? MARIANO MAYER: Argentina has competitiveness and productivity issues, and in response to that we propose not to be cheaper, but to be better. Beyond weak infrastructure and unstable macroeconomic conditions, SMEs are most concerned about taxes, financing, labour costs and bureaucracy. In that context, the newly issued SME Law lowered taxes for these companies for the first time…

Interview

A stable foundation: Luis Pagani, CEO, Arcor, on supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and investment
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Interview :Luis Pagani In what ways could Argentina’s SMEs achieve higher levels of internationalisation and integration into global value chains? LUIS PAGANI: Argentine SMEs have developed an interesting management and business model in a macroeconomic environment that is not always propitious, without the possibility of accessing financing and facing a tax burden that in recent years has risen by 10 percentage points of GDP. One of Argentina’s main challenges is putting an end to the…

Analysis

Dynamic development: Smaller enterprises adapt to the government’s increasing focus on liberalisation and fiscal consolidation
OBG
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According to the Ministry of Production, 99.8% of Argentina’s companies are micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) – those with fewer than 200 employees – in 2017. With a 4.1m-strong workforce, they also provided the majority of jobs. A skilled local labour force and pervasive entrepreneurial spirit have also fostered a dense and diverse MSME ecosystem, covering nearly all sectors. The previous administration’s prioritisation of local production and employment fostered a relatively…

Overview

Tax liabilities: Impacts of the trend towards lower corporate tax rates on developed and developing economies
OBG
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Recent decades have seen a downward convergence in corporate tax regimes as advanced, emerging and developing economies moved to grab a bigger slice of the global investment pie. Headline corporate tax rates have fallen by 20 percentage points since the early 1980s. Alongside lower average rates, special tax incentives aimed at capturing investment have emerged, further reducing the effective rates paid by transnational corporations. In the aftermath of the 2007-08 global financial crisis, many countries were compelled to slash spending and raise revenue in order to rein in precipitous budget deficits. Even as tax revenues as a share of GDP in…

Overview

Tax liabilities: Impacts of the trend towards lower corporate tax rates on developed and developing economies
OBG
plus

Recent decades have seen a downward convergence in corporate tax regimes as advanced, emerging and developing economies moved to grab a bigger slice of the global investment pie. Headline corporate tax rates have fallen by 20 percentage points since the early 1980s. Alongside lower average rates, special tax incentives aimed at capturing investment have emerged, further reducing the effective rates paid by transnational corporations. In the aftermath of the 2007-08 global financial crisis, many countries were compelled to slash spending and raise revenue in order to rein in precipitous budget deficits. Even as tax revenues as a share of GDP in…