Overview
- The BCRA has bought about USD 562–563 million so far in January under its renewed FX-buying program, including USD 47 million on Thursday after USD 187 million on Wednesday.
- IMF spokesperson Julie Kozack praised the faster-than-anticipated pace and noted the bank’s purchases exceeded 5% of daily FX volume on most days.
- Corporate dollar issuance supplied much of the flow, with Telecom raising USD 600 million, John Deere USD 80 million and Scania USD 41 million, alongside planned deals from Banco Macro (USD 400 million) and a YPF bond reopening (USD 500 million).
- Gross reserves stood at USD 44.646 billion after a USD 71 million daily dip, remaining up USD 3.481 billion year to date, while net reserves are still negative.
- Market stress eased as the official dollar fell and country risk reached about 571, with analysts citing block trades and BCRA buying that made up to 77% of MAE spot volume.