In the midst of waiting for the government to conclude a new agreement and seek an injection of new funds, Rodrigo Valdés, director of the Western Hemisphere Department of the IMF, arrives to speak at a forum. According to official sources from the International Monetary Fund, on the sidelines of his trip to Buenos Aires to participate in the IEFA LATAM Forum, plans to meet with government officials
Lowering the heat of that meeting a bit, they explained that ““This is a common practice.” and which he responds “simply as a continuation of ongoing technical conversations between IMF staff and Argentine authorities.”
Furthermore, “as in the case of the visit of the first deputy managing director, Gita Gopinath, Mr. Valdés will take the opportunity to meet some analysts to continue our contacts with various interested parties”, they indicated through IMF sources.
In any case, Valdes’ main activity will be to speak at the IEFA forum (International Economic Forum of the Americas) which he organizes together with Integra Capital, the holding company of José Luis Manzano which was founded in 1995 and since then, according to what it promotes, has created projects for 17 billion dollars in financing and investments.
Manzano is one of the speakers at the meeting that begins Tuesday and concludes Wednesday at the Four Seasons. And in an Argentina with a debt that for many is insurmountable, the presence of Rodrigo Valdes, another rapporteur, responsible for the western hemisphere of the IMF, will be the real center of attention.
Valdes will inaugurate the forum alongside Lisa Raitt, vice president of global investment banking at Imperial Bank of Canada (CIBC), and Javier Gimeno, managing director for Latin America at French firm Saint-Gobain.
Valdés took office in May 2023, replacing Brazilian Ilan Goldfajn, who resigned from the IDB presidency. The role of the former Chilean minister of the socialist government led by Michele Bachelet was fundamental because it oversees the current program with the IMF.
And it comes in the midst of Luis Caputo’s efforts which translate into a sharp drop in spending and a fiscal and financial surplus implement another program with the Fund that allows access to fresh money.
When it’s his turn, Manzano will present himself as someone who understands “deep in Latin America and emerging markets”. We will refer to Integra Capital, which provides services in buying, merging companies and going public.
He will also present himself as a shareholder of Phoenix Global Resources, dedicated to oil exploitation and listed on the London Stock Exchange. He ships 10,000 barrels a day. Another of his companies, Interoil, an expert in oil exploration, is listed in Oslo. Manzano has interests in Venezuela and in gas distribution in Buenos Aires through Metrogas, in energy with Edenor and in Edemsa, in Mendoza, where he owns the Diga dell’Ameghino and Altus, the premium winery.
SN
Source: Clarin
