Argentina issues $1.3 billion in Treasury Bills

[January 02, 2020]  BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Argentina's new government announced the issuance of $1.326 billion of dollar-denominated Treasury Bills, to be directly subscribed by the central bank, according to a decree in the official Gazette on Thursday.

Argentina's President-elect Alberto Fernandez announces his cabinet next to Argentina's incoming Cabinet Chief, Santiago Cafiero, ahead of taking office on December 10, in Buenos Aires, Argentina December 6, 2019. REUTERS/Agustin Marcarian/File Photo

The issuance of the 10-year debt comes as the country's new Peronist President Alberto Fernandez looks to pay off creditors and stave off a damaging default.

Argentina, hit by a debt crisis since last year, is facing tough restructuring negotiations with creditors including the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over around $100 billion in sovereign debt which it is struggling to service.

The Treasury Bills will expire on Dec. 30 2029 with interest payable semi-annually. The rate will depend on the interest accrued by the central bank's foreign reserves and capped at the annual LIBOR rate minus one percentage point, the decree said.

A recently passed law to help revive Argentina's economy, Latin America's third largest, allows the government to issue up to $4.571 billion in similar dollar denominated bills.

(Reporting by Hernan Nessi; Writing by Adam Jourdan; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)

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