Argentina enhances deal with China; further diminishes role of the dollar

Revelations 13:16-18 “Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.”

Important Takeaways:

  • Argentina Shuns U.S. Dollar: Will Pay for China Imports in Yuan
  • The measure, driven by Argentina’s leftist President Alberto Fernández, is designed to relieve the South American country’s dwindling dollar reserves, AP reports.
  • The deal further enhances China’s rise on the world stage and the diminished role of the U.S. on a host of fronts under President Joe Biden.
  • After reaching the agreement with various companies, Argentina will use the yuan for imports from China worth about U.S.$1.04 billion from next month, accelerating trade with China as Beijing seeks to gain a further foothold in South America.
  • In November last year Argentina expanded a currency swap with China by $5 billion in an effort to increase its yuan reserves.
  • It has also been working hard to build a relationship with Beijing after having officially joined China’s infrastructure-building Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) last year.

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Argentina Supreme Court overrules presidential decree on school closures

By Eliana Raszewski

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Argentina’s Supreme Court overruled President Alberto Fernandez’s decree to close Buenos Aires schools amid a surge in coronavirus cases, siding with the city government who had sought to keep kids in class.

The Supreme Court ruling on Tuesday said April’s presidential decree constituted a violation of the legally-enshrined autonomy of the city of Buenos Aires, which it ruled was the authority in charge of deciding if schools should close.

Fernandez had ordered schools in and around the capital to temporarily close amid a steep second wave of COVID-19 cases and deaths, initially until the end of April and then extended to May 21.

However, the city government in Buenos Aires mounted a legal challenge with the Supreme Court. It has kept elementary schools and kindergartens open, while mandating hybrid in-person and virtual classes at high school level.

The city mayor, opposition party member Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, had argued there were little evidence that in-person classes increased infection rates. The national government said it wanted to reduce circulation to stem the spread of the virus.

Argentina has had over 3 million confirmed cases of the coronavirus since the start of the pandemic and almost 65,000 deaths. Intensive care wards have been filling up amid the second wave, with three-quarters of beds occupied in and around the capital.

The economy, already in recession before the pandemic, has also been badly hit, stoking poverty levels, while schools were closed for much of last year with tough lockdown measures.

(Reporting by Eliana Raszewski; Writing by Adam Jourdan; Editing by Rosalba O’Brien)