And I am afraid he is going to open up cold turkey, looks like his style, without giving anyone the time to at least try to get more competitive
I assume as much too, Milei isn't the type of man to think rationally about things, consequences be damned.
The Argentine peso is the currency that has appraised the most in the world in 2024
De acuerdo con el índice de Bloomberg, el peso argentino se fortaleció un 25% frente al dólar hasta marzo, si se toma la cotización libre; es la “número uno” a nivel internacional, y refleja el escenario de calma cambiaria que celebra el Gobierno
www.lanacion.com.ar
That's the problem, expensive peso, high export duties, high import duties (parts/capital goods) and liquified consumption domestically. This means opened imports or not, it makes more sense for Argentines to buy cheap MEP dollars and go buy washing machines or TVs in Chile or Brazil. Also, if domestically produced goods are expensive, and imported goods are expensive, which one are consumers going to chose? Probably the better quality, non Nac y Pop goods.
We've got all the negatives associated with dollarization, and none of the positives, such as a currency people actually trust.
Please elaborate more on why this could be a good thing for Argentina and Argentinians
It's generally not. Some items, such as electronics or coffee or chocolate would become cheaper for consumers because it's all imported as is, so the tarifs would assumingely be reduced or eliminated, but it also destroys the domestic consumption and tax base as (relatively) well paying jobs evaporate due to Argentine businesses lose competitiveness globally.
I don't think ISI works for a 21st Century economy, but I also think we shouldn't be surprised when a laissez faire economic policy results in imports drowning out expensive domestically produced goods. If this is what people want, so be it, but accept that living by the sword means dying by it too.
