Argentina to delay, expand soy dollar scheme

Argentina's government is expected to delay the full launch of an exclusive dollar rate for soybean trade to later this week at the earliest, while considering expanding the scheme to other agricultural products.

The decision to move the announcement from today to Wednesday at the earliest came as the economy ministry finalises details with different agricultural sectors, market participants said.

The ministry was poised to confirm the exclusive dollar exchange rate at which soybean trades today — participants initially expected the crop to trade at a rate of 300 pesos to the US dollar. Such a rate would be above the current official level of Ps210:$1 but below the "blue" rate of Ps391:$1.

In addition to pushing back the official announcement, the scheme is expected to cover other agricultural products, yet to be defined.

And the start of the scheme is expected to be pushed back to 15 April from 1 April as previously reported. At the same time, the duration of the rate is understood to be increased to 45 days from 30 days.

The upcoming announcement is the government's attempt to boost the country's dollar reserves. But participants are sceptical over the scheme's success, as persisting drought has weighed heavily on Argentina's 2022-23 soy harvest prospects.

By Michael Hanbury