Hernan Nessi
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Economic activity in Argentina likely fell again in November from a year earlier, but less than the 0.7 percent drop in October, a Reuters poll of market analysts showed on Wednesday.
The median forecast of 13 analysts calls for a 0.6% annual decline in economic activity in November, the sixth straight annual decline, if confirmed by officials.
Survey estimates ranged from a 3.2% decrease to a 1.6% increase.
The slight improvement was driven by the key agricultural sector, analysts said, while construction continued to underperform.
Despite the expected contraction, analysts were optimistic about growth expectations for December.
“The activity comes with a positive outlook to close a difficult year, which saw a sharp decline and a rapid recovery, albeit uneven across sectors,” said consultancy Orlando Ferreres & Asociados.
“In 2025, we hope that the most lethargic sectors will improve and return to economic growth, with a more even flow of activity.”
South America’s second-largest economy has suffered a prolonged downturn, marked by one of the highest inflation rates in the world, and has only recently shown signs of emerging from recession.
Earlier this month, analysts polled by the country’s central bank expected economic growth of around 1% through the first half of 2025, accelerating to an annual rate of 4.5% by the end of the year.
Argentina’s statistics agency INDEC is due to release data on economic activity for November on Thursday afternoon (19:00 GMT).
