Question regarding Argentina's debt payment of $9.8 billion to the IMF
 

According to a written report in this week's Economist, on December 15th, Nestor Kirchner, Argentina's president, announced that his government would repay its entire $9.8 billion debt to the International Monetary Fund.

My question is... How does Argentina suddenly have enough money to pay such a hefty debt off in one fell swoop? Are they just relocating money from somewhere else within their government and using it towards the debt, or are they such a wealthy country that they can pay such a large sum straight up?

The article goes on to mention Brazil clearing its $15.5 billion a few days prior, and I am curious how countries that are so deeply in debt are suddenly able to pay it off all at once?

bloomberg has a far more complete story
He is fed up with being an interest slave

They made a killing in the soy market

and in dollars

President Chavez is also giving a Billion dollar boost

It's a good move. The IMF's time might be largely done, as a major lender.

I too am glad for this. The IMF has a way of punishing those who would borrow money.

Interesting to see Chavez involved. Chalk up another mark on the tally board for why the US government hates him.

We hate him for paying off a loan?

Care to explain or does this belong in paranoia?

The IMF gives certain powerful interests a foothold (or more) into how these countries are run... Key in this is the privatization of things like electricity, water, etc.

There is a lot of money to be made on the backs of these nations.

In paying off this loan, Argentina can once more wrest control of their financial future and need not listen to those in the IMF who think they know what is best.

Chavez's many activities, including trading oil for Doctors with Castro, working to get OPEC to flex its muscles again, making deals for oil with China (rather than the US who views Venezuela's oil as part of the US reserve) have done nothing to win him friends in Washington. This is just another example of his thumbing his nose at the US.

Nothing paranoid there. Chavez is consistently looking for ways to do business and develop allies that do not include the US. The fact that US was probably involved in (and at least was willing to acknowlege and work with the group that made the attempt -- the US ambassador was a guest at the "victory party" but then distanced himself when it was clear that the coup wasn't going to happen) the attempted coup is a clear indication of where the US sits on the question of Chavez.

I wasn't aware that the US considered Venezuelan petroleum as part of our Strategic Petroleum Reserves. I believe that we use, or have used, petroleum purchased from Venezuela to help fill the SPR. Did you mean your statement in that way, or perhaps you meant that the United States is so arrogant as to consider that country's petroleum as our own?

Before I end this thread hijack, consider that the US does get a tidy bit of petroleum from Venezuela; not a huge amount, but it is somewhere around 50% of their output. With Chavez in power, we have seen a move towards socialism, an increasing friendly relationship with Cuba (which I could care less about, actually), threats on the oil supply to the US from that country, the use of Venezuelan oil and other aid packages to thwart US trade goals in Latin America, an attempted coup on his government, a recall vote on his presidency, potential aid to destabilizing forces in other Latin American countries, and a lack of attention to his country's own oil infrastructure while he increases spending on social programs (which do appear to be doing some good, at least).

I think it is reasonable for the US to consider Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez as, at the very least, a destablizing force in the region - particularly in reference to US foreign and energy policies.

Oh, and back on topic: huzzah to those Latin American countries that are paying off their debts! A more economically stable region can only be good for themselves, the US, and the world, as they position themselves to be larger players in the world economy.