Main aspects
In July, the clients of entities bought US$ 2,269 million in the foreign exchange market, operations that were funded with net sales by the National Treasury and the set of entities authorized to operate in foreign exchange, which offered US$ 1,260 million – in daily auctions of US$ 60 million – and US$ 1,009 million, respectively.
Companies in the real sector were net sellers of foreign currency for US$ 1,913 million.
Within this group, the main sector with net supply in historical terms, “Oilseeds and cereals”, had net sales of US$ 2,395 million, registering an increase of 26% compared to the same month in 2018.
Companies in the “Real Non-Oilseeds and Cereals Sector” made net purchases of US$ 482 million. The difference with respect to net purchases of US$ 1,952 million in July 2018 was mainly explained by lower flows for goods.
“Individuals”, which basically demand foreign currency for hoarding and trips abroad, bought US$ 2,177 million net (US$ 1,700 million for banknotes and US$ 477 million for the rest of their operations), an amount that showed a decrease of 20% compared to purchases of US$ 2,727 million in July 2018.
“Institutional investors and others”, both residents and non-residents, made net purchases in the month for US$ 1,456 million, a result that evidenced an increase of US$ 800 million compared to the same month of the previous year.
In addition to sales in the spot market, entities authorized to operate in foreign exchange made net forward purchases in foreign currency for US$ 332 million.
The exchange rate remained within the “Exchange Reference Zone”. The BCRA did not intervene in the spot exchange market with entities and made direct net purchases from the National Treasury for US$ 1,000 million.
The National Treasury recorded debt income of US$ 7,589 million, highlighting the disbursement of the International Monetary Fund for US$ 5,396 million and the issuance of Bills for US$ 2,045 million. On the other hand, it made principal and interest payments on debt for US$ 3,443 million, highlighting the disbursements for LETES for US$ 2,300 million, for International Bonds for US$ 584 million, for Discount for US$ 117 million and to International Organizations for US$ 329 million.
As a result of the aforementioned movements, gross international reserves increased by US$ 3,621 million during the month, ending July at a stock of US$ 67,899 million.
