Latin America Economics Update Colombians reject peace deal, main risks political Colombian voters’ rejection of the government’s peace deal with the FARC rebel group is unlikely to signal an immediate return to violence. And, while it is a significant blow to the economy’s medium... 3rd October 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Mexico raises rates to shore up the peso, further hikes likely The 50bp hike in Mexican interest rates (to 4.75%) at Thursday’s meeting was aimed squarely at supporting the peso. We expect another half-point increase at December’s meeting, taking rates to 5.25%. 29th September 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update An anatomy of Brazil’s recession The depth of Brazil’s recession has been blamed on everything from lower global commodity prices and tightening domestic credit conditions to poor infrastructure and excessive red tape. But this... 29th September 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Mexican peso in the spotlight The sharp drop in the Mexican peso against the dollar this month, driven partly by Donald Trump’s surge in the US election polls, has increased the chances of an interest rate hike at Thursday’s MPC... 28th September 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Trump, the US election and the implications for Latin America Donald Trump’s performance in last night’s first US presidential election debate doesn’t appear to have done himself any favours, but his election in November is still a real possibility. This would... 27th September 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Argentina: Q2 GDP data not as bad as they appear The bigger-than-expected drop in Argentine GDP in Q2 was alarming, but it was due largely to a slump in exports, which should be temporary. The pace of contraction in domestic demand eased and the... 23rd September 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Food inflation to fall in Brazil and Colombia, but rise in Mexico Food inflation should ease over the coming months in Brazil and Colombia, which will help to bring down the headline inflation rates in both countries. By contrast, in Mexico, we expect the lagged... 21st September 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Venezuela: dodging near-term default, kicks can down the road An imminent restructuring of the short term dollar debt of Venezuela’s state-owned oil company, PDVSA, means that the severely cash-strapped government should avoid default over the next 12 months... 14th September 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Falling mining output to drag on regional recovery Q2 GDP data released across Latin America over the past month revealed that the mining sector was a key drag on growth in a number of economies. This looks set to continue as the lagged impact of... 13th September 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Mexico: big budget cuts to weigh on 2017 growth, mining sector Substantial cuts to government spending announced by Mexico’s new finance minister José Meade in the 2017 budget reinforce our view that GDP growth will be weaker than the consensus expects next year... 9th September 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Troubled States only a small part of Brazil’s fiscal problems There is little doubt that the finances of Brazil’s State governments are in dire straits, but there is some confusion as to how this relates to the wider fiscal position. The key point is that the... 6th September 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Rousseff’s removal will shift attention to fiscal reforms The vote by Brazil’s Senate to formally remove President Rousseff from office was a foregone conclusion and is unlikely to have a major impact on markets. Attention will now shift to the passage of... 31st August 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Currencies take Yellen comments in their stride Currencies in Latin America have edged down against the dollar since Fed Chair Janet Yellen left the door open to a hike in US interest rates this year in her Jackson Hole speech, but the moves have... 30th August 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Colombia peace deal won't change near-term economic outlook According to media reports a final peace deal between the Colombian government and the FARC is likely to be announced later today at 6pm local time. This will be an historic milestone and should... 24th August 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Brazil’s CA deficit narrows, but more work to do elsewhere The further narrowing of Brazil’s current account deficit in June has significantly reduced the vulnerability of the country’s financial markets to external shocks. Elsewhere, however, there is still... 16th August 2016 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Chile & Peru MPCs hint that tightening done, but hikes still likely Having left interest rates unchanged last night, the Chilean and Peruvian central banks both removed the reference to a tightening bias in their accompanying statements. However, with inflation likely... 12th August 2016 · 1 min read
