Argentina's Peso Strengthens on Parallel Market, Narrows Gap With Official Rate After Milei Stands Firm on Pro-Market Agenda

• Argentina's peso on the parallel market strengthened over 1.5% against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday, breaking below 1,000 per dollar • The surge comes after President Javier Milei announced he would not back down from pushing his pro-market agenda • Argentina has had strict capital controls in place since 2019 which created a wide gap between the official and parallel exchange rates • The gap between the official and black market rates has narrowed significantly since the start of the year to under 18% now • The country is grappling with inflation over 250% and a deep fiscal deficit