Argentina secures $7.5bn disbursement as IMF board OKs reviews: govt

Argentina secures $7.5bn disbursement as IMF board OKs reviews: govt

Business

IMF staff and Argentina had reached an agreement late in July

(Reuters) - The executive board of the International Monetary Fund approved on Wednesday the fifth and sixth reviews of its $44 billion program with Argentina, allowing for the disbursement of $7.5 billion the cash-strapped economy desperately needs, the Argentine government said.

"The IMF board approved the disbursement of $7.5 billion," the economy ministry said in a statement.

IMF staff and Argentina had reached an agreement late in July, with the disbursement left pending board approval.

Argentina's net foreign exchange reserves were in the red ahead of the disbursement and the South American country agreed a $775 million loan with Qatar plus a $1 billion bridge loan from regional development bank CAF and $1.7 billion from a swap with China to make a payment to the IMF earlier this month.