José Luis Machinea is an Argentine

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

 economist and United Nations

United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

 official.

Career

Machinea was born in Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

, and earned a degree in Economics

Economics

Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...

 from the Universidad Católica Argentina in 1968. He first entered public service in 1974, as a member of the Central Bank's Center for Montary and Banking Policy Studies. He became head of the institution's Statistics and Research Bureau in 1983, and in August 1986, President Raúl Alfonsín

Raúl Alfonsín

Raúl Ricardo Alfonsín was an Argentine lawyer, politician and statesman, who served as the President of Argentina from December 10, 1983, to July 8, 1989. Alfonsín was the first democratically-elected president of Argentina following the military government known as the National Reorganization...

 appointed the young economist President of the Central Bank.

Machinea sought to limit central bank liabilities caused by non-performing loans to the nation's then-myriad State enterprises and agencies. He responded to growing inflation, which had been tamed somewhat in 1986, but which had grown to over 20% a month in mid-1988, by helping outline a Plan Primavera ("Springtime Plan"). Enacted on August 3, it initially reduced inflation by flooding the market with the central bank's foreign exchange reserves, thereby curving the chief cause for the inflation crisis: the demand for US dollars. Following Machinea's curtailment of the central bank's dollar sales on February 6, 1989, however, the exchange rate ballooned uncontrollably, and he resigned on March 31. These developments led to monthly inflation rates of over 100% by mid-year, as well as unprecedented riots and looting

1989 riots in Argentina

The 1989 food riots were a series of riots and related episodes of looting in stores and supermarkets in Argentina, during the last part of the presidency of Raúl Alfonsín, between May and June 1989...

.

In the 1990s he worked in the private sector, as a consultant and in economic research organizations. He then served as Minister of Economy under President Fernando de la Rúa

Fernando de la Rúa

Fernando de la Rúa is an Argentine politician. He was president of the country from December 10, 1999 to December 21, 2001 for the Alliance for Work, Justice and Education ....

, from December 1999 until February 2001, when he was replaced briefly by Ricardo López Murphy

Ricardo López Murphy

Ricardo Hipólito López Murphy is an Argentine economist and politician.-Career:López Murphy was born in Adrogué, Buenos Aires Province. He attended the National University of La Plata, where he was awarded the title of "Licenciado en Economía" in 1975...

. In early 2001 he successfully negotiated an agreement with the International Monetary Fund

International Monetary Fund

The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...

 to refinance and exchange Argentine debt bonds for 39.7 billion USD

United States dollar

The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....

, avoiding a default

Default (finance)

In finance, default occurs when a debtor has not met his or her legal obligations according to the debt contract, e.g. has not made a scheduled payment, or has violated a loan covenant of the debt contract. A default is the failure to pay back a loan. Default may occur if the debtor is either...

 and providing fresh funds. In exchange, the Argentine government agreed to implement measures requested by the IMF, which included reducing future pensions and deregulation

Deregulation

Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or...

 of labour unions' work insurance.

This operation was informally called the Blindaje (that is, "the Armour") because it was intended to protect Argentina from the effects of the ongoing economic crisis

Argentine economic crisis (1999-2002)

The Argentine economic crisis was a financial situation, tied to poilitical unrest, that affected Argentina's economy during the late 1990s and early 2000s...

, but ultimately failed, as De la Rúa resigned in December 2001 and Argentina defaulted on its debt in early 2002.

With regards to the growth of the Argentine economy after the beginning of the recovery (around 9% annually, from 2003 to 2007), Machinea has called it "spectacular", but he has expressed doubts about the use of price controls (implemented by the administration of Néstor Kirchner

Néstor Kirchner

Néstor Carlos Kirchner was an Argentine politician who served as the 54th President of Argentina from 25 May 2003 until 10 December 2007. Previously, he was Governor of Santa Cruz Province since 10 December 1991. He briefly served as Secretary General of the Union of South American Nations ...

) to control inflation

Inflation

In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...

 in the long run. He has also stated that Argentina is already past the recovery phase, with current challenges being the attraction of investments to sustain a moderate growth over time.

Machinea served as the ninth Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean

United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean

The United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean was established in 1948 to encourage economic cooperation among its member states. In 1984, a resolution was passed to include the countries of the Caribbean in the name...

, from December 10, 2003 to May 13, 2008.