Unsettling times
The clock is ticking toward an Argentine default
ITS steakhouses bustle, its shopping malls teem. There are few signs that, on July 30th, Argentina could default for the eighth time. Yet the chances are rising.
The countdown started on June 16th, when the Supreme Court of the United States announced that it would not get involved in Argentina’s battle with NML Capital, a hedge fund that picked up cheap debt after Argentina’s 2001 default and has since litigated for payment of full principal plus interest. The decision left intact a ruling by Thomas Griesa, a New York district-court judge, which banned Argentina from paying the creditors who in 2005 and 2010 swapped 93% of defaulted debt for performing securities, if the country did not also pay NML what it wants.
This article appeared in the The Americas section of the print edition under the headline "Unsettling times"
From the July 26th 2014 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionMore from The Americas
Why Ecuador risked global condemnation to storm Mexico’s embassy
Jorge Glas, who had claimed asylum from Mexico, is accused of abetting drug networks
The world’s insatiable appetite for Canada’s maple syrup
Production is booming, but climate change is making output more erratic
Elon Musk is feuding with Brazil’s powerful Supreme Court
The court has become the de facto regulator of social media in the country