'Fix this disaster': Hope and fear as Argentina welcomes Peronists back to power

By Cassandra Garrison and Joan Manuel Santiago Lopez

BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Roxana Gonzalez, a bookshop owner in Buenos Aires, has a plea for new Argentine President Alberto Fernandez, who takes over power on Tuesday amid the pressures of recession, heavy debt and inflation.

"What I want is to fix this disaster," Gonzalez said at her bookstore on a busy avenue in Buenos Aires, with a large sign reading "liquidation" hanging above the entrance.

Gonzalez, 46, has sharply felt the downturn, which saw Argentina slip into recession last year, closing four bookstores she owned with her husband. Now, she manages the one remaining store while her husband drives for U.S. ride sharing platform Uber.

"These four years were an economic disaster for us," Gonzalez said, referring to outgoing President Mauricio Macri's term since the end of 2015 in which time the peso has plummeted against the dollar, growth has stalled and annual inflation has jumped to above 50%.

Fernandez, a centre-left Peronist who ran with populist ex-leader Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, faces a tough challenge to revive the economy, with dwindling foreign reserves and looming debt repayments threatening to push Argentina into default.

His fledgling government will need to negotiate debt restructuring with creditors including the International Monetary Fund to avoid being shut out of global markets, while reviving domestic demand to help people like Gonzalez.

Not everyone is convinced, however, with many fearing that the Peronists - the top political power in Argentina's recent history - will usher in protectionist policies that could aggravate the situation further.

Fernandez de Kirchner, the incoming vice president, divides opinion sharply among voters and markets. She raised export taxes on the key farm sector and imposed tough capital controls during her twin terms from 2007-2015.

"For me, with Fernandez it will be the same as it was with Cristina," said Macri supporter Joana Paredes, 22, a mobile phone seller in the capital who fears a sharp shift to the left.

"I am worried about these next four years in Argentina and the situation around Latin America because there are problems in Bolivia and Chile," she said. "You never know what can happen."

For Gonzalez things can only get better.

"I don't care if Alberto and Cristina rule together or separately. That's their business and I'm not interested," she said, adding all she wanted was Fernandez to focus on reviving growth and fixing the economy.

In March next year, her rental contract for the last store is due to expire and Gonzalez said she does not know if they will be able to stay open. She hoped to hold on to the rest of the books to sell to a collector but says she needs the cash now.

"I have to liquidate because I need the money," she said.

(Reporting by Joan Manuel Santiago Lopez and Cassandra Garrison; Editing by Adam Jourdan and Steve Orlofsky)