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Quick Facts
- Population:
- GDP (PPP):
- $1.1 trillion
- -0.3% 5-year compound annual growth
- $23,597 per capita
- Unemployment:
- Inflation (CPI):
- FDI Inflow:
- Public Debt:
Argentina’s economic freedom score is 51.0, making its economy the 144th freest in the 2023 Index. Its score is essentially unchanged from last year. Argentina is ranked 27th among 32 countries in the Americas region, and its overall score is below the regional and world averages.
Aggravated by corruption and political interference, the lack of judicial independence has severely eroded limits on government. Leftist spending measures and price controls distort markets, and government interference still hobbles the financial sector. Fading confidence in the government’s determination to promote or even sustain open markets has discouraged entrepreneurship.
Background
Argentina is South America’s second-largest country. It has vast agricultural and mineral resources, a highly educated population, and a long history of political and economic instability. Peronist President Alberto Fernández and Vice President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner are up for reelection in October 2023. The center-right is divided between the Together for Change and Freedom Advances coalitions. Rising inflation and record-low sovereign bonds, fueled by statist policies and out-of-control spending, have prolonged the effects of the 2020 debt default crisis. In 2022, the IMF approved a $44 billion Extended Arrangement. Cash-strapped Argentina has also received multimillion-dollar loans from multilateral institutions.
Rule of Law
The overall rule of law is weak in Argentina. The country’s property rights score is below the world average; its judicial effectiveness score is above the world average; and its government integrity score is below the world average.
Government Size
The top individual and corporate tax rates are, respectively, 35 percent and 35 percent. The tax burden equals 29.4 percent of GDP. Three-year government spending and budget balance averages are, respectively, 39.2 percent and –5.8 percent of GDP. Public debt equals 80.9 percent of GDP.
Regulatory Efficiency
Increased government regulatory interference undermines efficiency and productivity growth. Establishing a business remains time-consuming, and getting necessary permits is costly. Reforms of the rigid labor market have long been stalled. The most recent available inflation rate is 48.4 percent.
Open Markets
The trade-weighted average tariff rate is 11.9 percent, and more than 140 nontariff measures are in force. Heavy state involvement in the economy slows the investment approval process. The state interferes in the financial sector, and financial account transactions are subject to limits.