Bank issue ends only in vows

Flanked by Gabriela Ciganotto (Nation Bank), Economy Minister Miguel Peirano, Internal Trade Secretary Guillermo Moreno and Central Bank head Martín Redrado, Néstor Kirchner delivered a more conciliatory message with bankers. All good intentions. Below, after announcements, Kirchner talks with Carlos Heller, Jorge Brito and Mario Vicens.

No agreement was signed yesterday in the meeting bankers held with Argentine President Néstor Kirchner. They only gave their word to start offering credits at 9 per cent for businesses and at 12 per cent for consumers. Payment with credit cards on instalments at zero rate was also announced, something already in force to a certain extent.

The same situation observed last week with supermarket deal repeated yesterday. Pictures were taken, promises were made, but the list of items trimmed by 5 per cent has not been revealed yet. These controls do not actually help to solve the real problem; mere patches against inflation.

In the meantime, reports from organizations not touched by the invisible hand of Argentine Internal Trade Secretary, Guillermo Moreno, come up: in the province of Tierra del Fuego, September inflation hit 3.6 per cent (if annualised, more than 40 per cent).

Yesterday's announcement was more like a kind of 'rate dumping', that's to say, sale at different prices in different markets. In this way, reference is made to the strange phenomenon of lending at 9 per cent, even when losing (banks taking funds from savers at 12.5 per cent).

We will have to see how many, surely not much, can access these credits promised on Wednesday in Government House.