Strike halts grain exports in Argentina

BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA — A nationwide strike in Argentina protesting austerity measures under President Mauricio Macri brought the country’s airports to a standstill and halted work at key grains ports on May 29, according to a Reuters report.

The strike, called by the country’s main unions, comes as center-right leader Macri tumbles in the polls ahead of presidential elections in October, his popularity with voters hurt by high inflation, job losses and a weak peso.

According to Reuters, Argentina’s airports were shut down as a result of the strike, while grain exports stopped at the ports in Rosario, one of the most important agro-industrial regions in the world.

In February 2018, trucker owners went on strike briefly to attempt to force the adoption of minimum grain hauling rates, halting exports at the Port of Rosario.

That strike also affected the operation of grain mills in the Santa Fe province, where 80% of the country’s agricultural exports are processed, transported and loaded onto ships.

With 6.8 million tonnes of soybean exports in 2018-19, Argentina ranks third in that category behind Brazil and the United States, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.