Contrary to what happens in other sectors, in the knowledge economy companies expect increase their exports and their level of employment this year. According to a survey by Argencon, the business group that brings together the main companies in this segment, 80% of companies plan to increase their exports by 10% and adds 10% more people to its workforce.
The positive prospects contrast with the plans of other sectors for this 2024 marked by the strong adjustment that Javier Milei’s government is making. To cite an example, professional services firms are the most optimistic, where they expect a increase in job offers of approximately 20%. The Argencon study carried out in the first quarter of this year shows that only 10% of Information Technology companies expect similar growth.
At the same time, 8 out of 10 companies consulted believe they will be able to increase the level of their exports from the implementation of the new economic policy. Half of those interviewed said they believe that foreign sales will increase by 10% and Argencon underlined that no company believes that these will decrease compared to what they saw years ago. The data is no less: it is more than half of the companies interviewed by this study They export more than 50% of their production.
The “picture” of 2024 is no different from the film for this sector produced in the last five years. crowned as the fastest growing country. However, despite the optimism, companies in the sector believe that there are points that need to be adjusted for the technology industry to become more competitive. Among these, the exchange rate: 32% of companies surveyed mention a lack of unification and/or the normalization of the exchange rate as the main challenge to be faced, the macroeconomic factor being the great conditioning factor for the ecosystem.
“The results confirm that from the elimination of the exchange rate, the stabilization of the exchange rate, the simplification of regulations and the reforms announced in the labor market, the knowledge economy will have a significant impact improvement of its competitive ability at an international level, which would translate into an increase in employment and exports higher than that recorded in recent years”, explained Sebastián Mocorrea, president of Argencon.
In addition to the above, the knowledge sector – which is the fastest growing nationally for the past 5 years – competes globally to ensure a steady flow of income and foreign exchange, so the actions of other countries have an impact on Argentine exports. According to respondents, two factors will drive the growth of international trade in the knowledge economy: retention competitive costs (45%), followed by maintaining constant technological renewal (21%).
Likewise, 45% of companies believe that demand for the global knowledge-based services market for Latin America will be similar to global growth, while another 45% estimate it will be higher. 40% place Colombia as the main competitor to the Argentine offer in our region, followed by Mexico with 28%.
“It is crucial that Argentina follows the example of those countries that are strengthening their knowledge industries through diligent public policies. Improving competitiveness and exploiting the opportunities offered by the international market is essential to position our country among the most important globally”, underlined Luis Galeazzi, executive director of Argencon.
Source: Clarin
