The wealth of the provinces

Argentina enjoyed a period of unprecedented economic growth between the federalization of Buenos Aires in 1880 and the Centennial of independence in 1910. This dissertation deals with one aspect of the Argentine political economy which, it is argued, was a decisive driving force of the country's economic policies across the whole period: regional interests. As a country characterized by extreme geographic inequalities, the policy preferences of the various regions were diverse and often clashed with each other. The Interior, and particularly the poor provinces outside the fertile Pampas, sought for expansionary fiscal and monetary policies to pay for their economic development, while the richer regions favored less unorthodox policies. The Interior was generally protectionist, and the Pampas mostly free trade. The political economy outcome depended on the relative power of these two broadly defined regions. In the decade of 1880, under the administrations of Julio Roca and Miguel Juárez Celman, the Interior reached the height of its power. Economic policies followed quite neatly the interests of the regions that supported the presidencies of Roca and Juárez. Protection was granted