BUENOS AIRES, July 31 (Reuters) – Argentina’s Economy Minister Sergio Massa stated on Monday that the country will not utilize any of its own reserves to make a $2.7 billion repayment to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) due this week. Massa, who is also a presidential candidate in the upcoming October election, mentioned in a speech that this would be possible due to an extended swap deal with China and a new loan from the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF). Massa confirmed that the repayment will be made using a $1 billion bridge loan from CAF and $1.7 billion from the second tranche of a swap with China, a recent move made by Buenos Aires to fulfill part of its June payment to the IMF. Argentina, currently facing a severe economic crisis with high inflation and declining central bank reserves, needed to avoid defaulting on its obligations to the Fund, with maturities of $2.6 billion due on Monday and nearly $800 million due on Tuesday. ”I want to assure you – Argentina will not use any of its reserves to pay today’s maturity,” Massa stated in a televised speech. He added that the challenge for Argentina now is to “continue to safeguard the foreign currency reserves while maintaining economic activity levels.” Reporting by Eliana Raszewski and Gabriel Araujo; Editing by Bernadette Baum and Alexander VIllegas Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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