Investors Flock to Argentine ETF as Performance Surges

Argentina's equity market has soared amid encouraging inflation data.

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Finance Reporter
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Reviewed by: etf.com Staff
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Edited by: James Rubin

An Argentine stock-focused ETF has attracted millions in inflows over the past month as investors bet on the country’s policies to revive its battered economy.

The Global X MSCI Argentina ETF (ARGT), which was the best-performing single-country focused equity ETF of 2023, returning 53% annually, continues to draw new money into the fund at a rapid pace. Over the past month, the fund has surged by 11% and received $14 million in new inflows, according to data from etf.com.

The $233 million fund, which commenced trading in 2011, tracks the MSCI All Argentina index and holds about 25 companies. Over the past year, the fund is up 48%, according to etf.com data. 

The fund has been bolstered partly by the election of President Javier Milei in December 2023, who has pledged to overhaul the Argentine economy with reforms aimed at curbing inflation and boosting the nation’s struggling economy, according to Head of Portfolio Management at Global X Malcolm Dorson. Argentina had its first government budget surplus since 2008 in the first quarter of this year. However, Milei's policies have also been met with widespread domestic protests and strikes from labor unions and other groups.

Argentina’s central bank cut its benchmark interest rate by 10 percentage points in early April, following the country’s slowdown in inflation in March. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has commended Argentina’s efforts, crediting its “ambitious” economic policy with helping stabilize the country’s economy, according to Head of IMF Communications Julie Kozack.

"In addition to the market digesting the positive news, investors have welcomed Milei's recent success in passing his Omnibus Bill, which is now going into the hands of the Senate," Dorson said. 

The recent inflows into the ETF follow a record year for the fund in 2023, during which it quadrupled in size and had the best performance of any single-country focused equity ETF, according to Bloomberg. In 2023, the fund attracted $75 million, followed by another $66 million in new cash year to date, according to etf.com data.

Elon Musk Endorses Investing in Argentine Stocks

A May 6 post from Tesla CEO Elon Musk could give the fund another boost. “I recommend investing in Argentina,” Musk wrote above a picture of him and President Milei.

The ETF was recently up about 0.9% in Wednesday trading. 

The top holdings in the fund include Argentine companies MercadoLibre, Inc. and YPF SA Sponsored ADR Class D. The banking sector, in particular, has experienced a significant boost. Argentine banks including Banco Macro (BMA), Grupo Financiero Galicia (GGAL), and Banco BBVA Argentina SA (BAR) have all seen their stocks rise by over 100% this year so far.

Contact Lucy Brewster at [email protected]

Lucy Brewster is a finance reporter at etf.com covering asset managers, emerging technologies, and regulation. She hosts etf.com webinars and appears on Exchange Traded Fridays, etf.com’s flagship podcast. She previously was a finance fellow at Fortune Magazine where she covered markets, investment strategy, and venture capital. She has also been a freelancer writer at the publication Mergers & Acquisitions and a research fellow at the Historic Hudson Valley. 

She graduated from Vassar College in 2022 with a degree in History and was an editor of The Miscellany News, the college's award winning student run newspaper. 

Lucy lives in Brooklyn, NY, and in her free time she loves to run and find new recipes to cook.
 

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