Foreign trade of Argentina (Redirected from Argentine foreign trade)

Foreign trade of Argentina includes economic activities both within and outside Argentina especially with regards to merchandise exports and imports, as well as trade in services.

Colonial and early history

Argentina's primary exports in colonial times were largely limited to salted beef due to the fact that beef would not stay fresh during trans-Atlantic shipping - a problem which similarly precluded most grain exports until the 1870s.

Modern history

Argentina developed an agro-export model where they were highly dependent on the external sector, exporting commodities mostly to Western Europe. Much as colonial elites tried to emulate European styles, a wave of European investment and immigration so reshaped local culture and architecture in the late 19th and early 20th centuries (primarily in the Pampas area), that visitors often compared Buenos Aires with Paris.

Agriculturally and thinly populated, Argentina recorded trade surpluses for most of the period between 1900 and 1948, including a cumulative US$1 billion during World War I and US$1.7 billion during World War II. But record taxes on grain exports imposed by the administration of President Juan Perón (1946-55) and an increasing need for costly fuel and machinery helped result in a nearly-unbroken string of trade deficits between 1949 and 1962.

Port call on Buenos Aires' southside wharf (La Boca), circa 1888. Financed mostly with British capital, massive dock works touched off a foreign trade boom that reshaped the previously isolated Argentine economy.

Perón and, most notably, President Arturo Frondizi (1958-62), encouraged foreign as well as local investment in energy and industry as part of a developmentalist policy of import substitution industrialization. Trade deficits in the 1950s initially limited development due to the need for expensive machinery and supplies and a shortage of foreign exchange. But drawn to an economy that provided Latin America's highest standard of living, domestic and foreign investors responded, industrial production more than doubled, and the country's trade position became modestly positive throughout the 1963–79 era, even as domestic demand grew.

Policies of "free trade" financial deregulation pursued by Argentina's last dictatorship led to a sudden, record deficit in 1980 and, by 1981, a mountain of bad debts and financial collapse. The climate of slack domestic demand that prevailed in Argentina throughout the 1980s resulted in a cumulative US$38 billion in surpluses from 1982 to 1991; this brought the economy little direct benefit, however, as much of this was deposited abroad during that era of interest payment burdens and financial instability.

Economy Minister Domingo Cavallo enacted the Convertibility Law of 1991, pegging the monetary value of the Argentine peso to the United States dollar. The fixed exchange rate (1 peso to the dollar) allowed for a macroeconomic stabilization. Taking advantage of this low exchange rate, on the lower tariffs on imports and on the reappearance of credit after the free trade liberalization measures taken by President Carlos Menem's administration, Argentine firms and consumers tripled capital goods purchases from 1990 to 1994, while depressed auto sales rose by fivefold. The influx of imported machines and supplies helped the modernization of the country's industrial base; but it negatively impacted its trade balance, which accumulated US$22 billion in deficits from 1992 to 1999; the current account deficit, which would include growing foreign debt interest payments and deficits in trade in services, reached a record deficit of US$14 billion in 1998 alone.

Relying on sizable foreign investment inflows to balance the current account, these did not suffice and the Central Bank was again forced to resort to borrowing to protect the peso's value against such pressure (mostly by floating bonds, then the most sought-after in the developing world). Recession helped lead to a US$1 billion surplus in 2000 and another US$6 billion in 2001; but it was too little, too late. Buffeted by generalized global instability, the international derivatives market massively shorted Argentine bonds in the second half of 2001 and on December 23, following a spate of unpopular crisis measures, the Argentine government declared a default on US$93 billion of its bonds, the largest sovereign debt default in history.

Crisis and recovery

Immediately after the collapse of the Argentine economy at the end of 2001 and the devaluation of the peso in 2002, imports fell over half and Argentina's trade surplus soared to over US$16 billion, providing for the first current account surplus since 1990. As recovery ensued and the exchange rate stabilized around 3 pesos/dollar, exports (mainly soy, cereals and other agricultural products, as well as machinery and fuels) grew steadily.

Imports began recovering sharply in 2003, as both the purchasing power of the peso and domestic demand increased, and, despite this, from 2003 to 2011 the nation's merchandise trade balance recorded a cumulative US$115 billion in surpluses. These surpluses were bolstered as much by growing exports as by a marked recovery in terms of trade for Argentina, which by 2010 had improved 40% over the level prevailing in the 1990s. The nation's perennial trade deficit in manufactures widened during this expansion, however, and exceeded US$30 billion in 2011. Accordingly, the system of non-automatic import licensing was extended in 2011, and regulations were enacted for the auto sector establishing a model by which a company's future imports would be determined by their exports (though not necessarily in the same rubric). Domestic production grew to supply the majority of the Argentine market in a number of important rubrics historically dominated by imports amid these changes, including diverse manufactures such as information technology, major appliances, footwear, and farm machinery.

A collapse in global commodity prices in 2014 led to trade deficits for most of the 2015-18 period, culminating in a record current account deficit in 2017 of US$31 billion and an ensuing foreign debt crisis. The 2018 crisis, however, pushed imports down by 37% from 2017 to 2020, yielding US$50 billion in cumulative trade surpluses from 2019 to 2022 despite a 92% recovery in imports from 2020 to 2022 - though practically nil in total current account surpluses, due to higher foreign debt interest outlays.

Trade in services has historically been in deficit for Argentina, as both travel and foreign debt interest outlays often far outstrip services income. Annual services deficits averaged around US$5 billion in the 1980s and 1990s (mainly due to foreign debt payments) - but after the 2001 crisis, fell to around US$1 billion annually until 2007. Services deficits rose steadily afterward to a record US$9.7 billion in 2017, then easing to US$3.6 billion by 2021 - but jumping to around US$8 billion in 2022, largely as a result of renewed outbound travel by Argentines.

Argentina's exports and imports (FOB), in millions of USD, 1992–2004
Argentine goods exports from 1991 to 2013. A global commodities crash in 2014 pushed exports down to around US$60 billion in 2015-20 - but these later recovered, to a record US$88 billion in 2022.

Commercial relationships

Mercosur

Mercosur—the customs union that includes Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay—entered into force January 1, 1995; Bolivia, Chile, and Venezuela joined the pact subsequently as associate members. Cooperation between Brazil and Argentina (historic competitors) is the key to Mercosur's integration process, which includes political and military elements in addition to a customs union; Brazil accounts for 74% of Mercosur GDP and Argentina about 23%. Argentine intra-Mercosur trade rose dramatically from US$4 billion in 1991 to US$23 billion in 1998; it declined to US$9 billion during the 2002 crisis, but recovered quickly and reached US$44 billion in 2011 (28% of the Argentine total). More than 90% of intra-Mercosur trade is duty-free, while the group's common external tariff (CET) applies to more than 85% of imported goods. Remaining goods will be phased into the CET by 2006.

Brazil's higher level of industrialization and production capacity, as well as other economic asymmetries, have been a source of tension with Argentina. Following the 2001-02 crisis, Argentina's recovering industrial sector has pressured the government to obtain restrictions (especially quotas) on Mercosur's free trade regulations, in order to protect their growth from what they see as disloyal competition from their larger partner to the north. Exports to Brazil helped lessen the impact of the crisis on the industrial sector somewhat, though Argentina's intra-Mercosur trade yielded it a cumulative US$15 billion deficit from 2004 to 2008. A renewed devaluation of the peso contributed to a US$700 million surplus with Mercosur in 2009, though deficits of US$1.8 billion were recorded in 2010 and 2011.

Argentine trade with fellow Mercosur nations reached US$35 billion in 2022, and as in most years remained in deficit for Argentina with US$15.8 billion in exports and US$19.3 billion in imports. Mercosur buys 68% of Argentine exports of motor vehicles and auto parts, and these made up three-eights of total exports to the bloc in 2022.

China

Trade with China was negligible until 1992; it later grew rapidly and by 2010, China became Argentina's second largest trading partner. Argentine exports to the Asian giant are mainly soy, beef, barley and, increasingly, lithium carbonate - while imports are mainly industrial and consumer goods. Modest Argentine surpluses with China turned into deficits in 2008, however, and anti-dumping measures enacted subsequently triggered a Chinese boycott of its top Argentine import, soy oil, in 2010. Following trade negotiations, soy oil purchases from China resumed in 2011.

Argentina's merchandise trade deficit with China has mostly grown since then, reaching US$9.5 billion on US$17.5 billion in imports by 2022; China is now Argentina's leading source of imports by nation, with 21.5%.

These deficits have, in recent years, been partly financed by China itself by way of foreign exchange swaps. The two central banks first established these swap facilities in 2017, and expanded them to 130 billion yuan ($19.2 billion) in December 2018. In November 2022, Argentina and China agreed to add another 35 billion yuan (US$5.2 billion).

China has become the largest investor in Argentina's growing lithium mining sector, which by 2030 is projected by JPMorgan Chase to become the second-largest in the world - only behind Australia.

United States

The United States replaced the United Kingdom in the 1920s as both the leading source of manufactures and of imports overall. The U.S. share of imports and exports remained relatively stable at around 20% and 10%, respectively, until 2002; these proportions declined steadily afterward and by 2010, were approximately half the historical percentages. The U.S. has largely maintained a moderate trade surplus with Argentina, however. The record for this figure was logged in 1998, when the U.S. reaped a nearly US$3.7 billion surplus; this deficit later declined significantly, to then recover to US$3.5 billion by 2011.

Petrochemicals, gold, silver, and aluminum are the leading Argentine exports to the U.S., and wine the leading Argentine consumer good in the U.S. market; Argentine imports are in turn mainly industrial. Fresh Argentine beef was exported to the U.S. market in 1997 for the first time in over 60 years, and in 1999 its export quota of 20,000 tons was filled. Beef exports to the U.S. were suspended in August 2000 when Argentine cattle near the border with Paraguay (whose authorities refuse to vaccinate cattle against highly contagious hoof and mouth disease) were discovered to have anti-bodies for the infection. The quota was reinstated in early 2002 and has since averaged 28,000 tons.

The Obama administration suspended Argentine participation in the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) in 2012, citing a failure to pay arbitration payments awarded by the World Bank's ICSID to a number of U.S. firms adversely impacted by the 2002 devaluation of the peso. The GSP benefit (US$18 million in 2011) is relatively minimal, equaling 0.4% of Argentine exports to the U.S. of US$4.2 billion.

U.S.-Argentine trade has nevertheless grown - albeit slowly - and Argentina remains one of a few countries with which the U.S. routinely maintains a merchandise trade surplus. Mutual trade reached nearly US$20 billion in 2022, with US$6.9 billion in U.S. imports from Argentina and US$12.8 billion in exports to Argentina.

Trade in services with Argentina has been especially advantageous for the U.S., with Argentina's services deficit with the U.S. reaching US$5 billion in 2019 - the entirety for that year.

European Union

Argentina has a thriving and longstanding trade relationship with the European Union, as well as close historic and cultural ties dating to the colonial era that spanned 300 years until independence in 1816.

European investment and immigration dramatically reshaped Argentina after 1880 - and the British Empire in particular dominated Argentine trade with over a third of the total until World War I, buying mainly meats and cereals in exchange for a wide variety of consumer and industrial goods.

Argentine trade with Europe gradually declined in relation to other partner nations and regions. But the EU is still Argentina's third largest trading partner (after Brazil and China) and accounted for 13% of total Argentine trade in 2022, or US$22 billion - nearly balanced between exports to the EU (US$10.8 billion) and imports (US$11.1 billion). Argentina's main exports to the EU are processed agricultural products (38%), chemical products (21%) and fish and seafood (8%). The EU exports to Argentina mainly manufactured products, such as machinery and appliances (28%) and chemical products, including pharmaceutical products (29%).

Trade in services, which was relatively stable until 2019, was temporarily affected during the COVID pandemic - to later rebound. In 2020, the EU imported services from Argentina worth 1.6 billion euros, while it exported services worth 3.5 billion euros.

Argentina is also an important investment destination for European companies, particularly Spain. The stock of investments from the EU was 35.8 billion euros in 2020, making the EU, as a bloc, the top foreign investor in the country. Some 21 EU member states have signed agreements for the promotion and reciprocal protection of investments with Argentina, and as of 2022, the European Investment Bank had a portfolio of loans amounting to € 655 million in Argentina (including loans under preparation).

Intellectual property issues

Argentina adheres to most treaties and international agreements on intellectual property. It is a member of the World Intellectual Property Organization and signed the Uruguay Round agreements in December 1993, including measures related to intellectual property. However, extension of adequate patent protection to pharmaceuticals has been a highly contentious bilateral issue.

In May 1997, the U.S. suspended 50% of Argentina's GSP benefits because of its allegedly unsatisfactory pharmaceutical patent law. In May 1999, The U.S. Government initiated consultations under World Trade Organization procedures to address these inadequacies and expanded the consultations in May 2007.

Merchandise exports and imports

Foreign trade by type of product

Argentine foreign trade in 2022 by type of product (million US$):

Product class Exports Imports Balance
Meats and offal 4082 155 3927
Seafood 1795 97 1698
Dairy 1690 37 1653
Maize, wheat, and other cereals 15575 48 15527
Soy and other oilseeds 4351 2234 2117
Other crops 2250 881 1369
Vegetable oils 9170 307 8863
Fruit and vegetable preparations 813 101 712
Wine and spirits 948 111 837
Animal fodder (mainly soy) 13249 184 13065
Tobacco 326 53 273
Other agricultural goods 930 813 117
Fuel and lubricants 6836 12783 -5947
Other minerals 398 1178 -780
Pharmaceuticals 913 3182 -2269
Perfume and cosmetics 480 475 5
Fertilizers 65 2743 -2678
Cleansers, polish, etc. 196 477 -281
Other chemicals 4790 8100 -3310
Rubber and plastics 1309 5066 -3757
Leather, hides, and furs 493 161 332
Forestry products 685 1481 -796
Textiles, apparel, and footwear 487 2540 -2053
Glass, stone, ceramics, etc. 177 735 -558
Gold, silver, jewelry, and geodes 2680 187 2493
Iron and steel 1202 3083 -1881
Aluminum 781 534 247
Other metals 60 1425 -1365
Machinery and parts 1594 20215 -18621
Motor vehicles and parts 7945 7888 57
Aircraft and other transport equipment 252 257 -5
Precision equipment 110 1947 -1837
Other manufactures 1814 2045 -231
Argentina Total 88446 81523 6923

Argentine exports by type of product, 1993-2022 (million US$):

Category 1993-96 97-2000 2001-04 2005-08 2009-12 2013-16 2017-21 2022
Total Exports (annual) 18433 25629 29177 53233 71702 64765 63672 88446
Soy 2764 3639 6155 11872 16875 18338 17575 24868
Corn 743 1155 1110 2147 3598 4240 5942 9549
Oil, Gas,
Petrochemicals
2236 3630 5753 8219 7272 4393 4438 9297
Motor Vehicles & Parts 1300 2759 2144 5341 8850 7968 6602 8678
Wheat 986 1380 1307 2159 2333 1372 2868 4724
Beef & Leather 1782 1654 1422 2493 2398 2099 3288 4268
Gold & Silver 20 90 115 495 1907 1994 2691 2959
Fruit & Wine 622 885 892 1865 2479 2342 2302 2041
Sunflower 947 1123 662 1036 1043 654 896 1891
Fish & Seafood 841 901 849 1119 1324 1567 1944 1823
Barley 128 174 141 361 1054 1210 862 1608
Dairy 189 328 348 712 1081 1080 892 1436
Others 5875 7911 8279 15414 21488 17508 13372 15304

Foreign trade by leading export destinations

Argentine foreign trade in 2022 by leading export destinations, and chief exports and imports with each (million US$):

Partner Exports Imports Balance
 Brazil 12665 16030 -3365
 China 8022 17516 -9494
 United States 6675 10330 -3655
 Chile 4938 778 4160
 India 4555 1849 2706
 Netherlands 3570 886 2684
 Vietnam 3230 1240 1990
 Peru 2444 299 2145
 Indonesia 2112 476 1636
 South Korea 2020 729 1291
 Spain 1733 1260 473
 Algeria 1600 181 1419
 Uruguay 1576 1276 300
 Malaysia 1494 408 1086
 Colombia 1430 473 957
 Paraguay 1324 1959 -635
 Saudi Arabia 1187 1094 93
 Mexico 1102 1711 -609
  Switzerland 1092 586 506
 Italy 1067 1678 -611
 UAE 951 864 87
 Morocco 944 548 396
 Egypt 929 429 500
 Poland 921 237 684
 Germany 884 2719 -1835
Rest of the world 19981 15967 4014
Argentina Total 88446 81523 6923

Exports by province

Argentine exports in 2022 by province and type (million US$):

Province Exports Per
capita
Growth
from 2010
Raw
materials
Agricultural
manufactures
Industrial Energy
 Buenos Aires Province 33025 1880 44.4 7286 10590 11730 3419
 Santa Fe 19163 5388 29.1 2768 13420 2844 131
 Córdoba 12852 3230 54.8 5783 5069 1976 25
 Neuquén 2912 4008 787.8 35 7 15 2855
 Chubut 2575 4269 -22.1 547 111 685 1232
 Santa Cruz 2242 6723 38.7 385 44 1598 215
 Entre Ríos 1912 1340 22.8 1082 681 148 0
 Mendoza 1601 795 -5.6 160 1069 251 121
 Santiago del Estero 1545 1466 232.3 1471 74 0 0
 Salta 1327 921 31.0 905 82 310 31
 La Pampa 1206 3295 320.2 958 220 4 23
 San Juan 1163 1421 -44.7 56 153 954 0
 Tucumán 954 560 4.3 277 298 376 3
 San Luis 879 1625 63.1 386 317 176 0
 Jujuy 873 1094 132.8 243 56 575 0
 Chaco 516 451 38.3 461 52 3 0
 Río Negro 460 604 -6.9 242 76 5 138
 Misiones 438 342 -17.0 43 240 155 0
 Tierra del Fuego 383 2009 -2.0 77 24 33 249
 Buenos Aires 311 100 -17.1 0 38 273 0
 Corrientes 273 228 76.1 150 92 31 0
 Catamarca 201 468 -88.1 35 11 155 0
 La Rioja 187 486 -34.8 8 99 79 0
 Formosa 41 68 13.9 22 18 1 0
Not classified by prov. 1406 n.a. -60.9 453 214 673 66
Argentina Total 88446 1921 29.8 23830 33055 23051 8509

This page was last updated at 2023-10-27 23:41 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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