WSC LegalWSC Legal
  • Firm
    • Cultural values
    • Associations
    • Community
  • Expertise
    • Practices
      • Administrative and Regulatory
      • Antitrust
      • Banking and Finance
      • Compliance
      • Corporate
      • Employment and Labor
      • Environmental
      • Insolvency and debtor-creditor
      • Litigation and Dispute Resolution
      • Mergers and Acquisitions
      • Tax and Trade
    • Industries
      • Agriculture and Fishing
      • Consumer Products and Retail
      • Entertainment
      • Financial Services
      • Manufacturing and Industry
      • Mining, Energy, Oil And Gas
      • ​Pharmaceuticals & Healthcare
      • Commercial Real Estate
      • The Digital Economy
    • Additional Services
  • Talent
    • Team
    • Internships and career
  • Insights
  • Contact
  • English
180 Days into the Milei Administration
editor2025-04-30T10:51:38-03:00
Other Legal News in Argentina

Check out the latest news on laws and regulations.

Insights

  Back

180 Days into the Milei Administration

The Rollercoaster and The President: 180 Days into the Milei Administration

After a surprising victory, President Javier Milei took office on December 10, 2023. He is Argentina’s ninth since the country’s return to democracy in 1983. While we Argentines have become used to a seemingly never-ending rollercoaster, whipsawing us between the promises of fundamental change and long-term prosperity and the calls for equitable redistribution of wealth, this time seemed different. 56% of the population elected an outsider unafraid to shout and use crude language but also keen to demonstrate an understanding and expertise of economics never before seen in a presidential candidate—at least in our lifetimes.

180 Days into the Milei Administration

The first 180 days of the Milei administration have offered mixed results. International followers of Argentina are curious about the new president. Effective use of social media, a firebrand persona, meetings with significant (sometimes controversial) international figures, and an unwavering bludgeoning of the past, have contributed to the “Milei Phenomenon.” Many ask, “Can Milei succeed?”

This note cannot answer that question. But it can offer a better one: Is Argentina willing to embrace Milei’s policies?

The following paragraphs summarize recent events affecting the Argentine business ecosystem as a means to divine what may soon follow. We believe Milei’s fiery rhetoric is a sideshow, aiming at times to distract and at other times to drive home a message. Thus, if we set aside the political theater, we can better focus on the actions of his administration.

Economy

Milei managed to quickly defuse the economic bomb he inherited from the previous administration. These included a hard devaluation (over 100%) of the currency, a removal of most price controls (prompting a sharp increase in fuel, public utilities, and private healthcare), the slashing of government spending, all while maintaining the financial suppression rules that had ringfenced the outflow of hard currency.

The effects were immediate. Argentina went from a bargain to becoming unduly expensive, in each case measured against the dollar. With purchasing power pulverized, inflation receded from 25% per month in December 2023 to 4% in May 2024. The country has reported a fiscal surplus for five consecutive months. Private debt to pay for imports and dividends inherited from the prior government has been largely restructured through conversion of that debt to dollar-denominated sovereign bonds (the so-called “BOPREAL”).

Argentina’s sovereign risk rating has decreased; the annual prime lending rate in pesos has been cut from 111% to 40%. The Central Bank has slowly accumulated international reserves, which were fully depleted when the administration took office.

Perhaps most importantly, the Argentine measure of economic stability—the dollar-peso exchange rate—has remained stable. As the government pursues a planned 2% monthly devaluation of the official rate, the gap between the official and market rates has steadied between 10% and 20%, a far cry from the 150% that prevailed at the end of last year.

The brutal change in pricing relative to the dollar has brought recession. The government reports a 10% drop in the economic activity level compared to last year and the loss of approximately 100,000 payrolled jobs.

Initial Structural Reforms by Milei

Immediately upon taking office, President Milei issued an executive order to repeal or amend more than 300 laws, rules, or regulations. In general terms, the executive action endeavors to sharply pare bureaucracy and to limit government involvement in the private sector economy. While some of these efforts have been halted by the judiciary, many remain in place, including the repeal of:

• Restrictions on foreign ownership of rural land.
• Restrictions on the freedom of contract to define terms of residential and commercial leases.
• Regulations affecting critical industries such as communication (including satellite communications), healthcare, tourism, and airline travel.
• Restrictions on the freedom to contract in foreign currency.
• Laws and regulations affecting domestic commerce (e.g., restrictions on product display in retail outlets; mandates of domestic supply and price controls on key consumer items like meat, dairy, and fuel; laws requiring businesses and government to favor domestic products).

A Second Wave of Reforms

Since the beginning of the year, the president has been engaged in a political battle to enact structural reforms to promote investment. The so-called “Ley de Bases” narrowly survived the Senate and, together with a tax reform package, will return to the House of Representatives. We expect both initiatives will become law within the next two weeks. When this happens, the administration will have successfully enacted important structural reforms such as:

• Eliminating or reducing government agencies to decrease cost and enhance efficiency, including the privatization of certain government-owned companies.
• Creating a Large Investment Incentive Regime or “RIGI” for projects involving investments of more than US$200 million.
• Modernizing employment laws to increase jobs and reduce employer risk.
• Declaring a public emergency in administrative, economic, financial, and energy matters for one year, thereby investing the president with law-making authority normally reserved to the legislature until mid-2025.

What Next in the Milei Administration?

With the Ley de Bases and the tax reform package soon to become law, the Milei administration concludes the initial phase. The challenge now turns on sustainability of the measures, which will depend on how quickly the economy can rebound. The Milei government has no new recipes for economic growth, however, insisting on a return to international credit, stimulus by lowering taxes, and modernizing the economy to attract foreign direct investment. The rollercoaster has been down this track before. It remains to be seen, however, whether Argentines will stay on this time until the end of the ride.

Despite the recession, the president’s public support so far remains strong with no significant civil unrest, as many feared. Public opinion polls indicate most people understand the current sacrifices are necessary to stabilize Argentina’s future. The opposition remains divided, and if the economy begins to recover, Milei will be in a favorable position to win next year’s mid-term elections and gain stronger support in Congress, enabling deeper structural reforms.

We are encouraged by the Milei administration’s show of political savvy. If the macroeconomy continues its path towards health, if commodity prices rise, if the promises of natural resource extraction like Vaca Muerta and the Lithium Triangle can be shepherded to reality, and if the electorate is rewarded by an uptick in economic activity by early 2025, then we might conclude Argentina has been willing to embrace Milei’s policies.

In the meantime, keep your seatbelts fastened.

Categorías

  • Antitrust
  • Commercial Law
  • Compliance
  • Corporate Law
  • Foreign Exchange Controls
  • Labor & Employment
  • Litigation
  • Other Legal News in Argentina
  • Real Estate
  • Sin categoría
  • Tax and Customs

Últimas Noticias

The End of the Cepo in Argentina?
The End of the CEPO?
Will Argentina Benefit from a Free Trade Agreement with the EU?
Will Argentina Benefit from a Free Trade Agreement with the EU?
Customs Alert to Fight Counterfeit Goods
Customs Alert System to Fight Counterfeit Goods

Archivo

  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • December 2024
  • September 2024
  • July 2024
  • June 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • January 2023
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • December 2019
  • June 2019
  • January 2018
  • November 2017
  • January 2017

More information

If you would like to discuss this matter with the attorneys at Wiener Soto Caparros, please do not hesitate to contact our author.

Mariela del Carmen Caparrós - Wiener Soto Caparrós

Mariela del Carmen Caparrós

   

Subscribe to our

newsletter

    Laurence Wiener - Wiener Soto Caparrós

    Laurence Wiener

       

    Subscribe to our

    newsletter


      Disclaimer

      This article is based on publicly available information and is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to provide legal advice or an exhaustive analysis of the issues it mentions.


      Related Posts

      Regulating Artificial Intelligence in Argentina

      Regulating Artificial Intelligence in Argentina

      Check out the latest news on laws an... read more

      Argentina Primary Elections

      Legal take-aways from the Argentina Primary Elections (PASO)

      Check out the latest news on laws an... read more


      San Martín 140, Piso 18

      Buenos Aires, Argentina (C1004AAD)

      Phone:

      +54 11 5365-8355

      E-mail:

      info@wsclegal.com

      Connect with us


      • Company
      • Expertise
      • Talent
      • Insights
      • Contact
      • Privacy Policy
      WSC Legal © Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved.
      • Firm
        • Cultural values
        • Associations
        • Community
      • Expertise
        • Practices
          • Administrative and Regulatory
          • Antitrust
          • Banking and Finance
          • Compliance
          • Corporate
          • Employment and Labor
          • Environmental
          • Insolvency and debtor-creditor
          • Litigation and Dispute Resolution
          • Mergers and Acquisitions
          • Tax and Trade
        • Industries
          • Agriculture and Fishing
          • Consumer Products and Retail
          • Entertainment
          • Financial Services
          • Manufacturing and Industry
          • Mining, Energy, Oil And Gas
          • ​Pharmaceuticals & Healthcare
          • Commercial Real Estate
          • The Digital Economy
        • Additional Services
      • Talent
        • Team
        • Internships and career
      • Insights
      • Contact
      • English
      Manage Consent
      To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
      Functional Always active
      The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
      Preferences
      The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
      Statistics
      The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
      Marketing
      The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
      Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
      View preferences
      {title} {title} {title}