Argentina's economy contracted 10% in 2020
Argentina's economy shrank by 10% in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to initial estimates published this week by the INDEC statistics bureau.
The economy fell by 2.2% in December, from the same month last year - although GDP was up by 0.9% from November.
December was the eighth straight month of recovery from the lows registered in April - when the economy was badly hit by the coronavirus pandemic and strict lockdown imposed by the government to tackle the spread of the Covid-19.
A year to forget
The 2020 recession was the worst since the country's post-convertibility crisis in 2002.
This also marked the third straight year of recession in Argentina - with GDP falling 14.1% since a debt bubble collapse known as the "Macrisis" began in April 2018.
The worst-hit sectors were tourism (down a staggering 48.6%), and community, social and personal services (down 37.5%).
Construction fell 25.3% - though the sector recorded 6.3% growth in December, from a year earlier.
Manufacturing shrank 7.8% - but was likewise up 4.5% in December. New car and truck sales plunged to the lowest level since 2004: down 25.5%; though only 3.6% in December.
Only two sectors - finance (up 2.1%) and public utilities (up 0.8%) - grew in 2020.
Agriculture slid 6.8% from record harvests in 2019, with exports down 13.2% by volume due mainly to lower global demand.
The country's trade surplus thus slipped to $12.5 billion, from a near-record $16 billion in 2019 - leading to a loss in central bank reserves of $5.4 billion as foreign debt service again outstripped trade surpluses.
Stimulus measures helped push federal budget deficits up 180% (97% in real terms) to 2.3 trillion pesos ($31 billion), though the successful refinance of $66 billion in foreign debt eased interest outlays by 25% (47% in real terms).
Inflation slowed by one third to 36.1% in 2020 - while real wages slid 2.3% (after falling nearly 20% in 2018-19). Unemployment (11.7%) rose to its highest in 15 years.
At: https://www.batimes.com.ar/news/economy/indec-estimates-economy-contracted-10-in-2020.phtml
Construction cranes rise from a work site in Buenos Aires.
Though the 10% fall in Argentina's GDP was the sharpest since the 2002 crisis, a steady recovery since the depths of the Covid-19 lockdown in April led to signs of growth by December - particularly in construction.
