SANTIAGO, May 9 (Xinhua) -- Chile's Finance Minister Felipe Larrain said Wednesday his country would offer help to Argentina, given the continued devaluation of the Argentinean peso.

"We lament the situation which Argentina is going through," he said in a statement.

On Tuesday, Argentinean President Mauricio Macri said he had begun talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to ask for a "line of financial assistance."

The rise in the value of the U.S. dollar has hit Argentina hard, leading its central bank to raise its main interest rate to 40 percent and to call on financial institutions to reduce their dollar holdings from 30 to 10 percent.

"Yesterday, I spoke with my Argentinean colleagues to offer all the help we can provide. We are interested in seeing them doing well. That is what precisely what friends are for," commented Larrain.

He added that emerging economies were those who were most at risk from the rise of the U.S. currency.

Concerning how the value of the U.S. dollar was affecting Chile, Larrain said, "We must always be vigilant and alert. Because this could cause some inflationary pressure, although until now, we have only seen contained inflation. This is undoubtedly a topic we are observing...as it is affecting various economies."