Fitch Ratings: Argentina Fiscal Risks Lurk Despite 2018 Target Compliance
22 JAN 2019 11:27 AM ET
Fitch Ratings-New York/London-22 January 2019: Argentina met its fiscal deficit target last year, but risks to hitting future targets remain significant, Fitch Ratings says. These include revenue losses from the economic recession, spending pressures from a surge in inflation in 2018 and the upcoming election cycle.
Data released last week showed that the primary federal government deficit fell to 2.7% of GDP in 2018 from 3.8% in 2017. This was in line with the target in Argentina's IMF program, which also captures some capital spending that previously was not recorded in fiscal statistics. The improvement reflected lower growth in primary spending (22%) compared to revenues (30%). This offset a jump in interest payments and reduced the total deficit to 5.5% from 6.0%.
The 2019 budget targets a zero primary balance, involving a sizeable adjustment that relies in roughly equal parts on export tax increases and cuts to investment, subsidies and other discretionary outlays.
Fitch expects that the government will meet the target given the importance of IMF program compliance for financing, and that it would offset slippage with new measures. However, Argentina faces substantial fiscal risks, which are a key factor in the Negative Outlook we assigned to its 'B' rating in November.
First, economic recession poses risks to revenues. Fitch forecasts real GDP to contract by 1.7% in 2019, following an estimated 2.5% contraction in 2018. The 2019 budget projects that new export taxes will yield 1.2pp of GDP in revenues in 2019 and that non-export taxes will be resilient. But signs of revenue weakness are emerging. Tax and social security contributions fell sharply in 4Q18, by 10.8% yoy in real terms.