US Steps in to Stabilize Argentina's Economy Amid Fiscal Crisis

Tue Oct 21 2025 02:01:20 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

The US government is prepared to assist Argentina as it faces severe financial challenges, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent calling the nation an important ally.

In response to Argentina's economic turmoil, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has affirmed the US's commitment to support the nation with various stabilization measures. The Argentine peso's steep decline has raised concerns about the effectiveness of President Javier Milei's economic reforms. With upcoming elections looming, both leaders plan to strategize solutions, signaling a potential collaborative effort.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said the US is ready to do what is needed to help stabilize Argentina's escalating financial turmoil.

All options for stabilization are on the table, Bessent wrote on social media, calling Argentina a systematically important US ally in Latin America. The message helped to calm financial markets, which have been rattled as recent election losses raise doubts about the future of Javier Milei's cost-cutting, free-market agenda. The value of the peso has been plunging, while investors dump Argentine stocks and bonds.

Milei, a libertarian economist and ally of US President Donald Trump, was elected president of Argentina in 2023 as an outsider candidate who promised to control soaring inflation through radical government spending cuts and other reforms. A stable Argentine peso is critical to that pledge.

But the currency has lost value as investors move money out of the country, in part worried about the government's ability to keep the peso steady. In recent weeks, the Argentine central bank has stepped in to try to stave off further weakness in the peso. This effort included spending $1.1bn (£810m) of its reserves last week to buy pesos, which has put the country in an even more precarious position regarding its debt.

Bessent stated that the US is considering intervening by purchasing Argentine pesos and dollar-denominated government debt among other forms of support. More details will emerge after President Trump meets with Milei in New York on Tuesday.

Milei expressed enormous gratitude for the US's pledge of support, which bolstered Argentine markets. Those of us who defend the ideas of freedom must work together for the welfare of our peoples, he wrote on social media.

Milei was the first foreign leader to meet with Trump post-election, and his economic policies have garnered admiration among conservatives in the US. However, he faces challenges domestically, including recent electoral losses and allegations against his sister in a bribery scandal. Argentina's mid-term elections in October will serve as a critical test for his policies.

Bessent previously supported Argentina in securing a $20bn loan from the International Monetary Fund, which highlights the ongoing partnership between the two nations amidst economic strife.