As reported by the INDEC national statistics bureau, Argentina's GDP contracted by 5.4% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2020. Unemployment rose to 10.4% in the same period, registering a rise of 1.5 points from the last quarter of 2019 (8.9%). The first quarter still does not incorporate a large part of the COVID-19 lockdown and its economic measures. In comparison to the fourth quarter of 2019, in seasonally adjusted terms, imports fell by 7.6%, exports by 13.4%, investments by 9.7%, private consumption by 6.8%, while public consumption increased by 1.6%. The lockdown, which remains in place in the City of Buenos Aires and the surrounding metropolitan area, has hammered domestic demand and forced the govt. to hike public spending in order to stave off rising poverty. Private analysts are predicting a contraction of at least 9.5% for 2020, while the IMF estimates a contraction of 9.9%.