Argentina may be close to getting a bridge loan.

Argentina appeared close to securing an emergency bridge loan of $450 million to prevent trouble with U.S. banking regulators. Monetary sources in Basel, Switzerland, said finance ministers from several countries committed themselves in principle to the new credit, aimed at reducing overdue Argentine interest payments of more than $1 billion. The loan was also needed to free $1.4 billion in standby credit frozen by the International Monetary Fund after Argentina failed to meet economic performance targets.