Buenos Aires, February 3, 2026 – Argentine companies' stocks listed on Wall Street endured a day of heavy losses this Tuesday, with declines reaching up to 32%, amidst renewed financial tension that also impacted sovereign bonds and pushed the country risk back above 500 basis points. The market deterioration came after statements from Economy Minister Luis Caputo, who confirmed that the government has no plans to return to international debt markets in the short term, and President Javier Milei, who reiterated his strategy of paying off liabilities through asset sales and maintaining a 'scarcity of sovereign bonds' in circulation. The biggest falls in the main index were for Sociedad Comercial del Plata, which lost around 3.4%, and Aluar, with a decline close to 2.3%, a move analysts attribute to profit-taking after the rally seen in January. From the government, Caputo insisted that the official strategy does not contemplate an immediate return to foreign-law external debt, and highlighted the issuance of debt under local law, such as the Bonar 2029 N, as an alternative. Milei, for his part, reinforced the idea of reducing the debt stock through privatizations and state divestments. The combination of official definitions, specific corporate problems, and a more demanding financial context thus led to a day of high volatility and heavy losses for Argentine assets, reviving market doubts about the financial direction and the ability to maintain investor confidence in the short term. With this performance, the country risk index stood at around 506 basis points, reflecting an increase in the perception of risk regarding Argentine debt. In the local market, the S&P Merval failed to sustain its initial bullish momentum and ended the session down 1.3% in pesos, closing at 3,067,662 points. In contrast, the Global 2035 managed a slight rise of 0.1%. In the oil market, the company's shares were affected by reports indicating that the Abu Dhabi Investment Council, one of its main shareholders, is evaluating the disposal of its stake. According to market sources, the investment fund —which entered in 2019 with an additional investment of $55 million and controls 16.47% of the share capital— would sell through Goldman Sachs a block of more than 10 million shares, with an estimated placement price between $56.30 and $60.23. In recent days, a group of creditors of Bioceres S.A. advanced with the judicial enforcement of subsidiaries linked to its technology unit, following an adverse ruling from the New York Court that, although appealed, enabled restrictions on assets offered as collateral and deepened the group's financial and corporate uncertainty. The poor performance also reached other major Argentine companies. Globant recorded a fall of around 12%, while Vista retreated about 6.7%, pressured by the possible exit of a strategic shareholder. The share price continues to be affected by the impact on the market following the loss of control of assets linked to ProFarm Group in the United States.
