Caputo highlights Vaca Muerta's contribution to dollar stabilization: 'The party has just begun'

Argentina's Economy Minister Luis Caputo asserted that the nation is undergoing an economic transformation without recent precedent, crediting the stability of the exchange rate to a shift in the government's economic model, fiscal discipline, and the burgeoning contributions from key sectors like Vaca Muerta's energy production.

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What is happening we have never seen. The story of 'we've seen this before' does not apply.

Speaking at the IAE Business School Summit 2026, Caputo declared that Argentina's current economic achievements are unlike any seen before, emphasizing that the country's macroeconomic order was achieved "by its own decision" rather than as a result of a crisis. He pointed to the historical prevalence of fiscal deficits over the past 124 years, which led to numerous crises, and stressed the government's commitment to achieving financial equilibrium, including debt interest payments.

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The historical problem of Argentina was the fiscal deficit. In the last 124 years, we had a fiscal deficit in 113 and suffered 22 crises. Of those 22, twenty were of fiscal origin.

Caputo championed the "change of model" as a departure from decades of previous economic policies. He refuted claims that the current direction represents an indiscriminate economic opening, arguing instead that past policies harmed the productive sector through fiscal deficits, high inflation, currency instability, tax hikes, and a lack of credit. He noted that the previous economic scheme failed to generate sustained growth, with economic activity, exports, and employment stagnating for 15 years while inflation and poverty rose.

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We wanted financial balance. Where do you think we were going to get US$8 billion per year to take on new debt and pay interest?

The minister also challenged the notion of "external restriction" as a primary economic problem, stating that the issue lies with the "model" itself. He asserted that the new economic framework has ensured sufficient foreign currency availability for imports, dividend repatriation, and individual savings, leading the Central Bank to purchase approximately $100 million daily. Caputo specifically lauded the energy and mining sectors for their significant contributions to job creation and export revenue.

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The only thing that harms industry is having a fiscal deficit financed by printing money, rampant inflation, currency instability, tax hikes, regulations, and lack of credit.