LatinNews Daily - 31 October 2023

* Argentina’s Economy Minister Sergio Massa has threatened to bar oil producers from exporting unless they increase fuel supplies to address current shortages. Speaking to the press in Tucumán province, Massa – who is also the presidential candidate for the ruling Peronist Unión por la Patria (UP) coalition – stated that “Argentine oil is for the Argentine people”, saying he would defend “domestic supply” and “the consumption of the Argentine people”. He gave producers until midnight tonight (31 October) to solve the supply issues before blocking producers’ ability to export. Argentina’s largest oil producers and refiners released a joint statement on 30 October stating they had presented a plan to the government to normalise the supply of fuel on the domestic market. Massa noted that Argentina’s oil sector was currently registering record production levels and stated that some producers had been holding onto fuel supplies amid speculation over a possible currency devaluation on the official exchange rate following the presidential first round on 22 October, which saw Massa and the far-right populist Javier Milei proceed to a run-off vote on 19 November. Milei’s shock win in the August primary elections (Paso) led the government to devalue the peso in a bid to calm the markets.