Argentina Government To Offer 0% Loans To Promote Local Tourism
Speaking before businessmen and officials at the presidential residence in the Buenos Aires suburb of Olivos, Fernandez said the government would offer a total of 300 million pesos ($874,000) in loans of three-to-six months at zero interest to businesses engaged in the industry.
In addition, she said, individuals would be able to obtain loans up to half the value of their monthly salary for expenses registered on debit cards with tourism-related entities.
In both cases, the loans would be accessed via a tender process.
Tourism is expected to be one of the industries in Argentina hardest hit by the current global crisis.
In addition to the domestic economic impact of a sudden economic downturn - which many economists foresee taking Argentina from a growth rate near 8% in the past five and a half years to a recession next year - tourism is being squeezed by a sudden loss of competitiveness in the national exchange rate.
Whereas the Brazilian real has lost 36% of its value since the beginning of August, the Argentine peso has declined by a more modest 11%, reflecting central bank concerns about the impact that a sharp depreciation might have on public confidence in the financial system. That is expected to drastically cut the flow of Brazilian and other visitors who have helped sustain a boom in Argentine tourism in recent years.
The tourism promotion effort comes on the heels of other measures aimed at helping sectors, such as the auto industry and farmers, and at boosting infrastructure spending.
-By Michael Casey, Dow Jones Newswires; michael.j.casey@dowjones.com; 54-11-4590 2428
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Publié le 11 Décembre 2008 Copyright © 2008 Dowjones
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