⁍ Argentine lawmaker and sources told Reuters a breakthrough in debt restructuring talks was near.

---

⁍ Mounting expectations of such a deal lifted the country’s sovereign bonds around 1% in the afternoon.

---

⁍ Argentina and its creditors have been at an impasse over proposals to revamp the debt ahead of the Aug. 4 deadline.

---

– With a Tuesday deadline looming, Argentina and its creditors are said to be close to a deal on restructuring the country’s foreign debt. A ruling party lawmaker tells Reuters that a deal is “near to closing” after Economy Minister Martin Guzman met with lawmakers. “He gave us reason to feel optimistic that there are significant chances of success in closing the negotiation,” she says. Earlier, creditors had rejected the country’s “final” offer and rallied behind a counterproposal. A source close to the negotiations says a deal has been “struck” between creditors and the government. A second person close to the talks says Argentina and creditors are holding discussions “as we speak” toward an agreement to bridge the gap of around 3 cents on the dollar between the most recent rival proposals. That would value the offer near 54.8 cents, the source says. Argentina, a major grains producer that has been in default since May, struck a $57 billion deal with the International Monetary Fund in 2018. Guzman has said Argentina is assessing options ahead of the Tuesday deadline, though the government has hinted at a delay. Argentine President Alberto Fernandez and Guzman had been adamant that an offer made in early July, following months of talks, was the recession-hit country’s maximum. “If there’s no deal we will advance with the IMF on a new program and come back to talk with the private sector in six or eight months, but with a deeper restructuring proposal,” Guzman said Sunday.