Argentina has about US$7 billion of that left.
In a meeting Thursday with reporters in the Argentine capital, Cavallo pointed to a statement the previous day by John Taylor, the US Treasury's undersecretary for international affairs, which called on the IMF to approve the next loan payment "quickly." Taylor asked the IMF to speed the funding and "possibly bring it forward, to give a clear message to the markets that we have support," Cavallo said.
"I believe the IMF will respond favorably," Cavallo said.
The IMF won't speed up disbursement of the estimated US$4.6 billion that Argentina has coming in 2002 or 2003, to provide it this year, spokesman Thomas Dawson said this week.
"There's nothing planned at this point," Dawson told reporters.
Some investors agree the IMF is right to take a harder line.
"Investors won't make responsible investments and governments won't make responsible fiscal policy until they learn they are going to be left to take responsibility for their own actions," said Francis Rodilosso, who helps manage about US$130 million in emerging-market debt for Van Eck Capital in New York.
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