Argentina - The economy

RETURN TO RSRCE RErURIQ TO -~~~~~~~~~R E S T R I C T E D REPORTS DESK WITHIN CIRCULATING COPY R e po rt N o. WH-60a ONE WEET E N E DNJ TO ARCHIY DiSION This report was prepared for use within the Bank. In. making it available to others, the Bank assumes no responsibility to them for the accuracy or completeness of the information contained herein. INTERNATIONAL BANK FOR RECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT THE ECONOMY OF ARGENTINA August 30, 1957 Department of Operations Western Hemisphere  CURRENCY EQUIVALENT Currency Unit - Peso (symbol m $n) Par Value US $1 a 18 Pesos Free Rate (floating) around US $1 . 40 Pesos  TAELE OF CONTENTS Page No. Basic Data Summary and Conclusions i I. The Setting 1 Geography 1 Population 2 History 2 II. The Economy 4 General Characteristics 4 Foreign Trade 6 Financial Structure 7 Investment 9 Foreign Debt 11 Banking 12 Labor Relations 13 III. Current Position 14 General 14 Agriculture 14 Power 15 Petroleum 16 Transportation 18 Industry 19 The Balance of Payments 20 Inflation 22 IV. Prospects 24 Short-term Outlook 24 Longer-run Prospects 26 Annex - Banking and Currency Reforms 28 Statistical Tables 29-61  STATISTICAL TABLES Table No. Page No. External Debt 1 External Public Debt Outstanding December 31, 1956 29 2 Interest and Amortization Payments on External Public Debt 30 National Accounts 3 Main Sectors of the Economy 31 4 GNP, Consumption and Investment 32 5 Investments in Detail 33 6 Gross National Product 34 7 Participation of Labor and Capital in Net National Income 35 Fiscal Data 8 Fiscal Data 1947-55 36 9 Participation in Tax Revenues of the National and Provincial Governments 37 10 Total Public Debt Outstanding: 1946-55 38 11 GNP and Public Debt 39 Monetary Data 12 Origins of Money Supply 40 13 Monetary Expansion 41 14 Loans and Deposits 42 Foreign Trade and Payments 15 Free Market Rates: U.S. Dollar 43 16 Balance of Trade and Terms of Trade 44 17 Foreign Trade 45 18 Regional Trade Balances for Selected Years 46 19 Main Exports 47 20 Main Imports 48 21 Meat: Production, Consumption, Exports 49 22 Production and Exports of Principal Agricultural Products 50 23 Foreign Direct Investment 51 24 Cost of Repatriation of Foreign Debt and the Nationalization of Foreign Firms, 1946-48 52 25 Balance of Payments, 1951-55 53-54  Statistical Tables (Cont'd.) Table No. Page No. Industry 26 Fuel Output and Imports 55 27 Petroleum: Estimated Production and Consumption 56 28 Petroleum: Estimated Future Consumption and Refineries' Capacity 57 29 Electric Power 58 30 Industrial Production 59 31 Industrial Employment and Wages 60 32 Railroad Operations 61 M A P S General .. . . ... .*.. after Basic Data Natural Regions .................. . . .. after Page 1 Production . . . .. . . .. ...... ........... after Page 4 Oil Fields and Pipelines.............. ........ after Page 16 Transportation ...... .... .... .... ........... O-* after Page 18  BASIC DATA Area 1,079,965 square miles (78% arable and pastoral) Population 18,919,000 (1955) Rate: 1.9% yearly GNP (at constant in 1955 1950 prices) Pesos 69 billion Per Capita: Pesos 3,659 (about US$400) Trade (& million) 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 Exports 1,169 678 1,099 1,027 928 943 Imports 1.477 1,8 795 979 1,172 1,128 - 308 - 503 d 304 ^ 48 - 244 1i6 Budget Exnenditures (million pesos) Ordinary and canital i.expendltures (ex- cluding debt armiort- ization) 14,925 17,355 20,017 21,941 24,648 n.a. Deficit 5,641 6,072 8,500 9,451 12,500 Net Sale of Bonds 3,456 4,722 7,678 7,599 7,563 Morney SunTpl (million pesos) 26,742 30,429 37,720 43,869 51,624 60,272 Cost of Living (1946=100) 289 401 Z17 432 486 551 Internal Public Debt (millicn pesos) (Lnd of year) 21,428 26,092 33,734 41,307 51,469 External Public Debt Yillion US' ea,u.ivalent 164 147 136 147 185 686 1/ Includes funding- of con.,iercial debts to '.estern European countries and Japan.  / M~~~~~~od,ejone JUJUY E .bonol S ' f H W--<1, C~~~A, Solto / 0 * ~~~~~ASUNCION \ % 1 ot/ Lc RsoiC s^/ wo > t- IF0rmnso \ CU jS NJAN 1 C H A CO N T R ,~. SA TIAGPO 4Iwr 4 2 h