* Argentina’s national statistics institute (Indec) has reported that the country’s GDP increased by only 0.7% in the first quarter of 2023 with respect to the previous quarter, and by 1.3% with respect to the first quarter in 2022. This followed a GDP contraction of 1.7% in the final quarter of 2022. The quarterly growth was slightly lower than had been expected, with a Bloomberg survey predicting growth of 0.8%. The disappointing Q1 growth comes as annual inflation rose to 114.2% in May, and as one of the country’s worst droughts on record is threatening the vital agricultural sector.