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Maintaining robust levels of profitability through the use of financial instruments rather than the development of core competencies, Argentina’s insurance industry has remained relatively stable since 2008. The introduction of more market-friendly regulations since 2015, coupled with improvements across a number of macroeconomic indicators, is expected to have a positive impact on the insurance industry, enabling it to focus more on developing the market as well as take on a more active role in the overall economy. Regulatory reforms are expected to lead to market consolidation as the government seeks to strengthen the industry and attract international players. While penetration rates remain low, the active role of the government in the development of the sector is an encouraging sign for both local and international insurers. This chapter features interviews with Juan Pazo, Superintendent, National Superintendence of Insurance; and Alejandro Simón, CEO, Grupo Sancor Seguros.

After going through a period of recession in 2016, epitomised by a sharp drop in both trade and investment, the new administration’s market-friendly policies have begun to show positive results, with investment returning to 2015 levels, despite the liberalisation of capital controls. While stronger economic growth has seen imports increase, exports have not risen at a commensurate rate, widening the trade deficit. In this context, improving the country’s global competitiveness in exports remains one of the key challenges for the current administration. Argentina’s large internal market, availability of natural resources, agriculture and agro-industrial potential, and strong human capital – combined with market friendly policies and reforms at the administrative level – should provide the necessary impetus to reopen trade to the rest of the world. This chapter includes a dialogue with Daniel Herrero, CEO, Toyota Argentina and Hernán Vázquez, CEO, Volkswagen Argentina; and an interview with Juan Pablo Tripodi, Executive President, Argentina Investment and Trade Promotion Agency.

Argentina’s historic issuance of $16.5bn worth of bonds in April 2016 marked the country’s return to the international capital markets after effectively being barred for 15 years. Argentina has had a troubling history in global markets, having defaulted on its sovereign debt eight times since 1816, the most significant being the 2001 default on more than $80bn. Since taking office, President Mauricio Macri’s administration has successfully reached an agreement with its holdout creditors and implemented a number of market-friendly reforms, ranging from lifting currency restrictions to abolishing export quotas. While this helped to significantly improve investor confidence in the nation, bolstering its performance across most metrics, some of these gains have been eroded in the early months of 2018, amid creeping inflation and a shift away from emerging market equities among investors. This chapter features an interview with Marcos Ayerra, President, Comisión Nacional de Valores.

After the adoption of more market-friendly policies, Argentina’s banking sector has gradually begun to show signs of a return to positive growth. Since 2015 the government has been undertaking a number of reforms aimed at boosting investor confidence in the sector, increasing financial intermediation and improving the overall health of the financial services industry. At the same time, banks have experienced strong loan portfolio increases within corporate and consumer segments, fees and procedures have been eased for users, and digital services are on the rise. While reforms engendered since 2015 are assumed to be paying off, the financial services industry and the entire Argentine economy are still enduring a period of structural reforms. This chapter contains interviews with Javier González Fraga, President, Banco Nación; and Eduardo Escasany, President, Grupo Financiero Galicia.

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.

Today, despite being one of the largest economies in Latin America, Argentina has suffered serious economic crises over the past two decades, which have stymied its growth, constricted foreign direct investment into its productive sectors and limited the country’s ability to harness its vast natural resources. The country’s economy is driven by the oil and gas industry, boasting significant onshore, offshore and shale oil and gas reserves, alongside its agricultural and livestock industries. On the regional and global stage Argentina has a high profile, where it currently chairs the G20 and is an observer member of the Pacific Alliance, while aspiring towards OECD membership. However, with the government having been granted a $50bn bailout from the IMF in June 2018, the spectre of economic crisis and indebtedness looks to have reappeared, just at a time when investors appeared to be showing renewed interest in the country following the election victory of pro-business President Mauricio Macri in October 2015. This chapter contains interviews with President Mauricio Macri; Jorge Faurie, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship; Steven Ciobo, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, Australia; and a viewpoint with Luis Alberto Moreno, President, Inter-American Bank of Development.