Argentina response to drought.

[Klause]

The country try can't afford direct subsidies so they have enacted a bunch of other policies:


* Extension of annual operating notes by one year automatically.

* Reduction of interest on all farm loans (land operating inputs equipment) by 10% for a full year (average rate is 14%)

*Removal of export taxes on beans in the affected areas


*Funding and implementation of irrigation and livestock watering projects.



Here they won't even help all those producers affected by the fires last fall

[ajl]

To Canada's credit at least we don't have export taxes. I though they had removed all these export taxes a couple of years ago when they last had regime change in Argentina? The B of C also suppresses interest rates around here on an ongoing basis by printing the loon. With the debt load in this country, what would interest rates be if the printing press was stopped? 7%, 9%? All debtors benefit from this policy, not just farmers.

[Klause]

To Canada's credit at least we don't have export taxes. I though they had removed all these export taxes a couple of years ago when they last had regime change in Argentina? The B of C also suppresses interest rates around here on an ongoing basis by printing the loon. With the debt load in this country, what would interest rates be if the printing press was stopped? 7%, 9%? All debtors benefit from this policy, not just farmers.

Export taxes on all but beans were removed. Beans were reduced and continue to be reduced by the year.


Interestingly because of their closeness to ports... With the export tax it still nets an Argentinian producer more than a Canadian producer. (30 cents a bu to get onto a ship plus 90 cents of tax vs 2.40 a bu to get onto a ship in Vancouver from mid point SK