Economic history of Argentina assumed power, inflation was equivalent to an annual rate of 5000%, and output had declined sharply. In 1976, the era of import substitution was ended, and the government lowered import barriers, liberalized restrictions on foreign borrowing, and supported the peso against foreign currencies. That exposed the fact that domestic firms could not compete with foreign imports because of the overvalued currency and long-term structural problems. A financial reform was implemented that aimed both to liberalize capital markets and to link Argentina more effectively with the world capital market. After the relatively stable years of 1976 to 1978, fiscal deficits started
Currency lads and lasses of illegality, inferior quality, and subordination. By analogy, native-born colonials came to be known as "currency", in contrast to the British-born "sterling". The first reference in print to the native-born being called "currency" was in the "Sydney Gazette" of 13 September 1822, in a letter signed by "Lydia Languish" calling for more social events to be organised for "currency lasses". As applied to people rather money, the term originally had derogatory connotations – by the early 1820s, "currency had stuck for male and female native-born and everyone knew what it implied". However, it was soon reclaimed by the native-born as