Argentines Withdrew $1.6 Billion From Banks in May, Clarin Says

Argentines withdrew $1.6 billion from banks in May after the government tightened controls on the foreign exchange market, newspaper Clarin reported.

About $605 million was taken out of banks from May 28 to June 1, while the pace of withdrawals slowed last week to about $70 million per day, the Buenos Aires-based newspaper said, citing officials at the central bank it didn’t identify.

President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner tightened controls on the foreign exchange market in November to protect central bank reserves, as the country taps them to pay debt. Since then, depositors have withdrawn a total of $4.4 billion, Clarin said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Eliana Raszewski in Buenos Aires at eraszewski@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Joshua Goodman at jgoodman19@bloomberg.net.