President Macri invites business leaders to invest in Argentina

Argentine President Mauricio Macri on Tuesday invited business leaders to invest in his country, saying "you are in the right place at the perfect time."

Addressing the 2016 Investment and Business Summit in Buenos Aires, Macri called on investors to "form part of this wonderful era that is beginning in Argentina."

Macri took office in late 2015, ushering in a new pro-business administration that took over the progressive government of Cristina Fernandez.

"This government's goal is development," said Macri, adding that "with an infrastructure plan and a productive plan for those who want to invest, we are going to generate jobs and growth."

Argentina's "agro-industry, sustainable mining, traditional and renewable energy" are just a few of the sectors that offer opportunities for investment, said Macri, emphasizing that "the recession is behind us."

Organized by the Argentine Agency for International Trade and Investment, the forum will offer conferences on different sectors and networking opportunities through Thursday.

The event has drawn about 400 public-sector representatives and 1,900 investors and business owners from 67 countries.

Argentina needs some 175 billion U.S. dollars in investment to modernize infrastructure, Juan Procaccini, the head of the agency, told Xinhua in the lead up to the forum. Endi