BUENOS AIRES--Argentina's economy will likely grow about 4% this year, the country's central bank president said Thursday.
The forecast comes about a month after Argentine President Cristina Kirchner said the economy would expand by at least 3.5% in 2013.
Argentina's economy grew 5.1% in the first half of the year, according to the national statistics agency, Indec.
The latest forecast, unveiled by Central Bank of Argentina President Mercedes Marco del Pont in a television interview, indicates the economy will out-perform a much weaker expansion last year, when it grew 1.9%, according to Indec.
Still, many economists say Indec's data exaggerate economic growth by as many as two or three percentage points.
Critics say the agency vastly underestimates inflation and as a result skews economic growth data. Indec has consistently estimated annual inflation at around 10% in recent years while economists have put the rate at somewhere between 20% and 25% annually.
A recent survey of analysts by FocusEconomics put Argentine economic growth at 3.6% this year and at 2.6% next year.
Whatever the case, the rapid reported growth implies that Argentina will have to make payments for billions of dollars on securities that are tied to economic growth.
The government makes payments on the securities, known as GDP warrants, each December but only if the economy has grown more than 3.2% in the previous year.
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The forecast comes about a month after Argentine President Cristina Kirchner said the economy would expand by at least 3.5% in 2013.
Argentina's economy grew 5.1% in the first half of the year, according to the national statistics agency, Indec.
The latest forecast, unveiled by Central Bank of Argentina President Mercedes Marco del Pont in a television interview, indicates the economy will out-perform a much weaker expansion last year, when it grew 1.9%, according to Indec.
Still, many economists say Indec's data exaggerate economic growth by as many as two or three percentage points.
Critics say the agency vastly underestimates inflation and as a result skews economic growth data. Indec has consistently estimated annual inflation at around 10% in recent years while economists have put the rate at somewhere between 20% and 25% annually.
A recent survey of analysts by FocusEconomics put Argentine economic growth at 3.6% this year and at 2.6% next year.
Whatever the case, the rapid reported growth implies that Argentina will have to make payments for billions of dollars on securities that are tied to economic growth.
The government makes payments on the securities, known as GDP warrants, each December but only if the economy has grown more than 3.2% in the previous year.
nasdaq.com
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