Argentina's Country Risk Index fell on December 3, closing at 639 basis points according to JP Morgan's EMBI. This 5-point drop from the previous close signals growing confidence in sovereign bonds. The positive trend aligns with the recovery of dollar-denominated assets.
The Country Risk Index, measured by investment bank JP Morgan via its EMBI (Emerging Markets Bond Index), closed at 639 basis points on December 3. This marks a 5-point decline from the previous close of 647 points. The session opened at 647 and hit an intraday low of 636, indicating a clear downward trend.
The improvement in the indicator, which reflects the premium investors demand on Argentine debt compared to U.S. Treasury bonds, stems from the sustained recovery of Global and Bonar bonds in foreign currency. Dollar-denominated sovereign bonds rose an average of 0.4%, driving the index lower.
Over the past week, the Country Risk has consolidated below 650 points. On December 2, it remained stable at 647, and November ended near 648 points, suggesting markets are positively assessing the economic outlook.
Analysts emphasize that consistently breaking below 600 points to pave the way for re-entering international debt markets requires the Central Bank to accumulate genuine international reserves. This is seen as fundamental to easing concerns over the country's solvency.
The Country Risk calculates the yield spread between Argentine sovereign bonds and U.S. Treasuries, expressed in basis points (where 1 point equals 0.01%). A lower value means reduced borrowing costs, though dropping below 600 remains a key challenge for the government.