Argentina Currency

Argentina's economic crisis took a new, potentially calamitous turn Monday as the value of the national currency plummeted despite desperate measures by the government over the weekend to prevent its slide. The devaluation comes as President Eduardo Duhalde faces new questions at home and abroad about his government's ability to lead the country out of its economic and social crisis.

Following days of uncertainty, hoarding and repeated calls for calm, Argentina allowed its currency to float freely against the dollar for the first time in a decade Monday.

Three weeks after a wave of demonstrations brought him to power, Argentine President Eduardo Duhalde finds his administration at a critical juncture, caught between the demands of millions of his citizens and the expectations of the international finance community.

Showing little confidence in their country's economic future, Argentines drove down the value of their national currency, the peso, as it floated on the open market for the first time Friday after a decade when it was worth a dollar.

Ending agonizing days of uncertainty, Argentina finally embarked on a new economic path Sunday night, ending its 10-year experiment with a dollar-based currency by declaring an immediate devaluation of nearly 30%.

In his first public address since taking office two days earlier, Argentine President Eduardo Duhalde acknowledged Friday that the nation will have to devalue its currency, abandoning the peso's 10-year parity with the U.

Argentine Economy Minister Domingo Cavallo on Tuesday urged citizens to return almost $10 billion they have pulled from domestic banks since the end of June, saying it would help the country avoid a currency devaluation and debt default.

Stocks across Latin America and in Spain plunged Monday after Argentina stunned the financial community with a new policy on exchange rates that some analysts saw as a de facto devaluation.