Argentina’s Minister of Economy, Sergio Massa, has announced that a “wine dollar” will be introduced as of April 1 to favor exports of the wine sector, which has been punished by adverse weather conditions. This more convenient exchange rate will encourage the recovery of the sector’s export competitiveness and will contribute to consolidating Argentina’s reserves. In addition, this mechanism will be similar to other exchange rate systems that have been applied in the past to encourage foreign currency income from exports of sectors such as agriculture and livestock or knowledge industries.
Argentina’s wine production this year will be 21% lower than in 2022 due to weather conditions, which has led the industry to face a loss of profitability in the export business. With the “wine dollar” and other aids announced by Massa, the aim is to give containment to an industry hit by severe drought, frost, and hail.
Argentina is the world’s tenth-largest exporter of non-sparkling wines and musts, with exports last year totaling US$997.4 million, which was 4% less than in 2021. With the implementation of the “wine dollar”, it is expected that wine sector exports can recover, recover markets, and increase foreign currency revenues to meet the demanding goals of accumulating monetary reserves committed to the International Monetary Fund.