Banks in Argentina are to open for five hours for limited operations on Friday for the first time this week. They were closed after a series of court rulings allowed Argentines to withdraw their cash, leaving some banks very low on reserves. But Congress has now passed a law making it more difficult for people to get their money. The crisis provoked a major reshuffle in the government of President Eduardo Duhalde, with the resignation of Economy Minister Jorge Remes Lenicov. After four years of recession, Argentina is burdened by a $141bn debt mountain, a banking and financial system in disarray, and a poverty-stricken people hit by soaring unemployment. The Argentine Government is attempting to convince the International Monetary Fund to resume lending, cut off in December when the country defaulted on its debt repayments.