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Gold/Mining/Energy : Gold Price Monitor -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Professor Dotcomm who wrote (79735)	12/1/2001 2:03:56 PM
From: maceng2	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116764

Much appreciated, no doubt about that. Do you think there will be any further downside on this old news? news.ft.com

To: Professor Dotcomm who wrote (79735)	12/3/2001 4:08:35 PM
From: long-gone	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 116764

So if they want/need more than $250 a week they must buy gold? Monday December 3, 3:58 pm Eastern Time New banking rules in Argentina bring uneasy calm (UPDATE: Recasts lead; updates with fresh quotes, details) By Simon Gardner BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, Dec 3 (Reuters) - A run on Argentine banks appeared to fizzle out on Monday after the implementation of new government banking restrictions in an effort to avert the country's slide into economic disaster. Economy Minister Domingo Cavallo announced measures over the weekend limiting cash withdrawals to $250 per week and restricting the transfer of funds abroad in an effort to keep nervous savers from bleeding the banking system dry, which would likely sink Latin America's No. 3 economy and rock already weak global markets. But all appeared normal in downtown Buenos Aires on Monday with office workers buying lunchtime sandwiches often outnumbering lines outside cash machines -- a stark contrast to Friday when savers pounded on doors demanding banks give back savings as anxious crowds gathered outside local branches. ``Everything is normal, very quiet,'' said one bank teller. The Argentine Banking Association also said operations were normal on Monday. The new rules allow Argentines to access remaining funds by using checks and credit or debit cards, a provision that could help cut endemic tax evasion by ensuring financial transactions are on the books, and not under the counter. Analysts say Argentina loses half its potential tax revenues through evasion, a strain on finances that has contributed to economic woes and fears the country was headed for the biggest sovereign debt default ever. The government limit on international funds transfers meant Argentines taking over $1,000 abroad could face smuggling charges. Customs officers will be checking passengers on international flights to ensure they are not taking their cash abroad. Local banks, which have seen total deposits fall 17 percent so far this year, largely welcomed the measures, but many traders and economists were alarmed, with local debt and share markets grinding to a virtual halt while the measures were digested. ``We've closed off our borders to money, coming in and going out, and while that may save banks it will also halt foreign investment and make the recession worse,'' said Eduardo Peressini, a trader for Martorell brokerage. Other economists said the measures would further discourage consumer spending -- the main motor to the $285 billion economy -- and worsen a slump now in its fourth year that has seen the postal service and even beloved soccer clubs go broke. But many ordinary Argentines shrugged off the restrictions as irrelevant to them. With the average wage in this nation of 37 million at around $600 a month, most Argentines would be unaffected by the limits on withdrawals. ``Who spends that much a month anyway? I certainly don't,'' said Buenos Aires newspaper vendor Ignacio, standing next to a rack of papers devoting their front covers to explaining what the measures mean to the average Argentine in practical terms. Cavallo estimated over 97 percent of Argentines withdraw less than $250 a week. INVESTORS EYE IMF VISIT Investors are now waiting to see if a visiting International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission will bring $1.3 billion in aid the government badly needs to service its $132 billion public debt. Argentine bonds -- already on their knees after months of worries the government could default -- dropped sharply in early trade on Monday before rebounding in the afternoon and lifting other emerging market debt. Both Cavallo and President Fernando de la Rua have urged the public to support the restrictions and slammed speculators and ``vulture funds'' for trying to sink Argentina. The latest moves came amid fears Argentina could be forced to allow the peso to float, breaking its one-to-one peg to the dollar -- the axis on which the low-inflation economy has turned for a decade. With most debt held in dollars, a devaluation would lead to widespread bankruptcies, sending the economy into a spiral that could hit other emerging markets such as Turkey or Brazil, analysts say. U.S. Treasury Under Secretary for International Affairs John Taylor said on Monday the measures showed Argentina was committed to maintaining its peg to the U.S. dollar. Radio shows over the weekend explained to Argentines, accustomed to paying bills or shopping with cash, how to use debit cards and Cavallo said banks would stay open later on Monday to help savers. Before the measures were announced, many shops offered discounts of up to 20 percent on transactions paid in cash rather than with credit cards to avoid paying charges and value-added taxes as well as to hasten cash flows. The rules allow savers to convert peso accounts to dollars free of charge, bar banks from offering peso loans and require peso deposit rates be no higher than those on dollar deposits -- further enforcing the dollar as the primary currency unit. The measures are due to stay in place for 90 days, by which time the government expects to complete a massive restructuring of its public debt to help slash crippling interest it pays. Argentina's benchmark Global 2008 dollar bond jumped nearly 7 percent in thin trade as speculators sought to cover short positions, traders said. Country risk, or the premium Argentina must pay to entice investors away from safe-haven U.S. Treasuries, receded from near-record highs to 31.43 percentage points. But that still makes Argentina the riskiest emerging market bet by far according to J.P. Morgan's Emerging Market Bond Index Plus -- far riskier than both Ecuador, which defaulted on its debt in 1999, and conflict-ridden Nigeria. (Additional reporting by Brian Winter) biz.yahoo.com