Argentina team to meet IMF staff in Washington to advance deal talks

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - A team from Argentina's economy ministry and central bank will meet in Washington with staff from the International Monetary Fund starting this weekend to continue discussions over a new program, the government and the Fund said on Wednesday.

The South American country is grappling to strike an agreement with the IMF to roll over $45 billion in repayments it cannot currently make on a failed 2018 loan after years of economic, debt and currency crises.

"The aim is to continue advancing in the technical understandings within the framework of negotiations with that multilateral lender for a program that allows us to refinance the loan taken in 2018," the ministry said in a statement.

The Fund said the meetings will look "to deepen technical discussions toward an IMF supported program."

The Argentine government said it would early this month take to Congress an economic plan agreed with the IMF, but neither them nor the IMF mentioned the plan would be discussed.

(Reporting by Adam Jourdan and Rodrigo Campos; editing by Diane Craft)