Argentina's Shifting Economy: Identifying Future Growth Sectors Amidst Heterogeneous Recovery

Argentina's economic recovery is proving uneven, with a significant shift occurring in its business landscape, creating distinct winners and losers. A new analysis by consultancy MAP categorizes 68 economic segments into four groups: dynamic, potential, challenged, and critical, based on their current standing and outlook for the next 12 to 36 months.

The consultancy highlights that the economy is operating at multiple speeds, with even sectors like manufacturing showing vastly different realities. While the overall sector is down 2%, textiles are falling nearly 19% and appliances by 29%, contrasted by an 8.7% growth in the chemical industry. A similar pattern is observed in oil and gas, where non-conventional production, particularly from Vaca Muerta, is expanding robustly while conventional output declines.

These shifts are driven by simultaneous global and local transformations. Internationally, factors include the U.S.-China dispute, evolving global supply chains, the rise of artificial intelligence, and increased demand for energy and critical minerals. Locally, Argentina is experiencing macroeconomic stability, lower inflation, trade liberalization, deregulation, and a heightened emphasis on corporate productivity.

MAP identifies dynamic sectors as those with solid present performance and strong future prospects. These include unconventional oil & gas, mining, electricity, professional and financial services, freight transport, fuels, and various segments of the agricultural and food industries. These areas are poised to benefit from a global context prioritizing energy, strategic minerals, and technological infrastructure, alongside Argentina's own evolving economic framework.