Serial payers, serial losers? The political economy of Argentina's public debt

A global neoliberal architecture has enabled many countries to increase their public debts to meet their fiscal needs. But since 2008 a number of European and North American economies have faced financial crises induced by unsustainable debts. This paper analyses the case of post-default Argentina s...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Ozarow, Daniel, Cantamutto, Francisco
Format: article
Publication Date:2016
Country:España
Institution:Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Repository:Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UAB
Language:English
OAI Identifier:oai:ddd.uab.cat:167631
Online Access:https://ddd.uab.cat/record/167631
https://dx.doi.org/urn:doi:10.1080/03085147.2016.1161118
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Argentina
Public debt
External debt
Neoliberalism
Default
Vulture funds
Description
Summary:A global neoliberal architecture has enabled many countries to increase their public debts to meet their fiscal needs. But since 2008 a number of European and North American economies have faced financial crises induced by unsustainable debts. This paper analyses the case of post-default Argentina since 2001, so as to better comprehend the political economy of public debt, especially in cases where governments are elected on anti-austerity platforms. Presidents Néstor and Cristina Kirchner were committed to a debt-reduction policy, yet Argentina faced a new,'selective', default in 2014. This paper analyses how the country has been trapped in a cycle of debt dependency, which can only be interrupted by a comprehensive audit of the debts legitimacy followed by debt cancellation. Critical lessons are provided for other countries facing similar situations.