THE administration of new far-right Argentinian President Javier Milei said on Tuesday that his government would not renew the contracts of more than 5,000 employees hired this year before he took office.

The move is part of a sweeping programme of cutbacks and devaluations announced by the libertarian extremist since he took office on December 10. He has vowed to transform Argentina’s struggling economy, which has inflation running at around 160 per cent.

The contracts of other government employees, those taken on before 2023, will be reviewed, authorities said. 

With inflation expected to hit about 200 per cent by the end of the year, Mr Milei has pledged to slash state regulation and jobs and allow the privatisation of state-run industries, supposedly to boost exports and investment.

The cuts have already provoked protests, but President Milei has vowed to forge ahead.

“The goal is [to] start on the road to rebuilding our country, return freedom and autonomy to individuals and start to transform the enormous amount of regulations that have blocked, stalled and stopped economic growth,” he said on Tuesday.

Among the 300 changes are sweeping privatisations, a 50 per cent devaluation of the Argentinian peso, cuts to energy and transport subsidies and the abolition of some government ministries.