Argentina: New economy chief met by market, political doubts

By ALMUDENA CALATRAVA
Associated Press

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — The market welcomed Argentina’s new Economy Minister Sergio Massa with what appeared to be a cautiously optimistic attitude amid questions about how he would fulfill a key goal of reducing the fiscal deficit, while leftist groups criticized his initial plans that they said would inevitably lead to strong austerity measures. The peso strengthened slightly in the financial market while government bonds saw early gains in the first few hours of trading that were largely wiped out by the afternoon. Argentine stocks also saw slight gains both locally and in New York on a day in which equities in general saw gains.