United States, China, Russia and Saudi Arabia Meeting at the Summit of G-20 Countries in Argentina.

Argentina went to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to obtain financing of 57.000 million dollars and in exchange, agreed to eliminate from 2.019 the high fiscal deficit that is dragging the country. The central bank imposed a strict monetary policy to control excess liquidity and generate a slowdown in consumer prices.

The country and according to official sources, expects that inflationary expectations will be reduced so that the central bank can validate lower interest rates, which reached 73 percent in October and remain high at 61 percent this month. Thanks to the IMF disbursements, Argentina has the necessary funding for next year, but some analysts have raised doubts about what may happen in 2.020, when the current president or his successor would just start another term.

This weekend, friday and saturday, as mentioned by the International Information Agencies, the 20 global economic powers that make up the G-20 group meet for the thirteenth time and will be there in Argentina, in Buenos Aires. The main theme of the group will be the future of work in a digital world, education, sustainable development and food security. But it can not be ruled out that another issue is also relevant, such as the commercial policy promoted by the world's leading economy and its own conviction about climate change.

The Group of Twenty, G-20, is an association that includes the 19 most important industrialized and emerging countries on all continents (Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, Germany, France, Great Britain, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, United States) and, as a twentieth member, the European Union (EU). Together, they represent approximately two thirds of the population and more than 80 percent of the world's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Its summits, focusing on economic policy issues, usually take place once a year. The decisions made by the group are summarized in final statements, which are of political intent and not legally binding resolutions.

In addition, these meetings regularly include representatives of international organizations such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, as well as permanent and occasional guest countries. The participation of these organizations is relevant at present, since they have expressed their positions on the implementation of punitive tariffs and trade disputes that according to their assessments are having an impact on world trade and global growth.

The origins of the G-20, as expressed by international analysts and world newspapers, go back to a meeting of the seven major industrialized countries, grouped in the G-7, which was held in Cologne in June 1999. There, the seven heads of state and government present agreed to draw lessons from the management of the Asian crisis of 1997 and in the future, to systematically gather the most important sectoral leaders of global economic policy.

Since September 1999, the finance ministers and central bank presidents of the main industrialized and emerging economies have met to agree on measures of global financial stability.

The members of the G-20 were selected, at the time, by the heads of State and Government of the G-7, taking into account, among others, geographical and regional criteria. These G-20 forums were not launched until 2.008, in the midst of that global financial and economic crisis. The host of this first G-20 summit was the United States. The leaders of the member states adopted, as part of their final declaration, a chapter entitled "Commitment to an open global economy". It underlined the "crucial importance" of the fight against protectionism and warned countries against caring only for themselves in times of crisis.

The current president of the United States has challenged the prevailing global economic policy. With its "United States First" policy and the punitive tariffs it has imposed on key trading partners, such as Canada, China and the European Union (EU), it has distanced itself from the previous rules of the G-20 game.

At the last G-20 summit, in the summer of 2.017, in Hamburg, after long disputes over the principles of international trade, tariffs and global responsibility in climate protection, for the first time the final declaration of the summit of the G-20 included a passage stating that the group had not reached consensus on core issues, especially in terms of climate policy. A year later, and in the midst of an escalation of tariffs and counter tariffs against the main commercial partners of the United States, new conflicts threaten the consensus of the G-20 summit in 2.018, in Argentina. It is possible that there is no joint final declaration this weekend in Buenos Aires, the organizers anticipate in advance.

The signature for the next friday 30 of the new trade agreement, USMCA, between Mexico, Canada and the United States is scheduled within the summit. That day, will be the last in which the president of Mexico will be in charge before giving the post to his successor. After the signature, the trade agreement must then be ratified by the parliaments of the three countries.

On the sidelines of the G-20 summit, a Trump meeting is also planned with Russian President Vladimir Putin. It is also not clear if this encounter will finally take place or not. Both sides are currently debating less about trade issues, but mainly about the nuclear weapons reduction treaty and the meeting could be canceled due to Russia's recent actions in the Crimea, an attitude that was rejected from the beginning, by the first country world economy and the European Union.

The Russian president and the crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, will meet in the middle of the summit to discuss the oil markets, so they will do before the meeting of OPEC and its allies, that takes place next week in Vienna, to review the production policy. Producers are discussing a supply reduction of between 1 and 1.4 million barrels per day and possibly more, according to OPEC delegates. However, data from the US government have shown that crude inventories are increasing, so pressure to lower the price continues in the coming months.

The USA president will only remain one of the two days of the summit in Argentina, in addition to these international institutions such as the World Trade Organization (WTO) or the G-20 are rather "irritating" for him. But possibly as expected by world markets, if the meeting with the Chinese president is met and they reach a bilateral agreement on tariffs and a greater opening for imports from China that come from the United States. However, the USA president has declared that, if necessary, he has the possibility of placing another 250 billion dollars on import duties, if they do not get a deal.

For the time being, the crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, has already arrived in Buenos Aires to participate in the summit of leaders, in a visit marked by the controversy over the murder of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Saudi Arabia affirms that the prince, de facto ruler of the country, had no prior knowledge of the crime.

The host country, according to official sources, has everything prepared for the leaders of the main economies of the world, those who will taste wines, meats and the typical "choripán" of Argentina in the lunches and gala dinner that will be held during the summit. On Friday night, at the gala dinner to be held at the world renowned "Teatro Colón", the dignitaries will serve a crab "roll" from the southern province of "Tierra del Fuego" with avocado and almond croquettes. Saturday's main course will consist of braised Patagonian lamb. The meals will be accompanied by wines from different parts of Argentina and coffee.

But on the other hand it is expected to increase street protests and also that the movement for the city of Buenos Aires, the leaders of the twenty countries paralyze the city. For that reason, a holiday has been decreed in the city to prevent the flow of about three million "Porteños" who travel daily to work downtown. In addition, train and suburban services will be canceled. And the Illia highway will be closed, one of the main accesses to the city, as well as the El Palomar and Aeroparque Jorge Newbery airports.

The main objective is to prevent terrorist acts and violent protests in the streets, like those that took place in the previous summit, in Hamburg in 2.017, under the German presidency of the group. It is natural, always in these events there are protests and work will be done so that these protests are peaceful, according to declarations of the host country.

Another meeting held this month, that of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC), failed to reach consensus on a communiqué and there is uncertainty as to whether the leaders will be able to reach at least partial agreements at this G-20 summit and present a joint communiqué.

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Today, in terms of world markets, the Asian and North American stock markets are growing and those in Europe were mixed, due to optimism about the meeting of the leaders of China and the United States in the framework of the G-20 in Argentina next friday.

The price of WTI oil drops to 50.3 dollars (1.3% daily) a barrel on fears and uncertainty about the OPEC meeting next week and the increase in inventories in the United States, a country that is already the world's leading producer of the crude.

In Colombia, at this time (3.30pm) the Colcap index of the BVC presents a level similar to that of yesterday's close and the Colombian peso closes the day with devaluation to 3.271 per dollar against the TRM for today of 3.251.