Latin America Economics Update Argentine peso falls through 5/US$ and set to keep going The Argentine peso fell to a record low of 5/US$ today, however most small businesses and consumers are forced to access dollars at an even weaker rate on the black market. Going forward, we expect... 13th February 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Argentina: equity outperformance unlikely to be sustained The recent rally in Argentine equities stands in stark contrast to a falling foreign currency bond market this year. A weak bond market performance is largely explained by a US court case which has... 31st January 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Argentina Activity Indicator (Dec.) The Capital Economics Argentina Activity Indicator shows that Argentina’s economy continued to recover in the final quarter of 2012. Even so, we estimate that GDP growth was close to zero for the year... 25th January 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Bright start to the year as global tensions ease This is the first edition of our new monthly Latin America Markets Monitor. The purpose of this publication is to analyse the developments in local markets over the past month and give an update on... 22nd January 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Outlook brightens (a little) for Argentina in debt dispute Events have recently swung back in Argentina’s favour in its dispute with holdout bondholders. Despite this, there remains a significant risk of a default over the course of this year. What’s more... 8th January 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Chart Pack Growth picking up, but 2013 set to be a testing year Growth in Latin America has accelerated in the final months of this year. We reckon that regional GDP is on course to expand by just over 3% y/y in Q4, up from less than 2.5% y/y in Q3. This should... 14th December 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Argentine debt: what are the risks ahead? As the dust settles on the latest twist in Argentina’s sovereign debt debacle, attention has turned to 2013 and the possibility of a fresh default. This remains a significant risk. But while a default... 12th December 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Chart Pack A better end to the year Latin America appears to be enjoying an end of year growth spurt. We estimate that regional GDP growth accelerated to around 3% y/y in Q3, from a three-year low of 2.5% y/y in Q2. What’s more, growth... 28th November 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update US court ruling calls Argentina's bluff on holdout debt Yesterday’s ruling by a US judge implies that if Argentina continues to play hardball on its holdout debt it will find itself in technical default within a matter of weeks. This may not be the... 22nd November 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economic Outlook Growth to slow amid global headwinds The economies of Latin America will continue to outperform their peers in the developed world over the coming quarters, but growth is set to slow in 2013 and will be lacklustre by the standards of the... 21st November 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Argentina Activity Indicator (Nov.) The Capital Economics Argentina Activity Indicator suggests that Argentina’s economy pulled out of recession in Q3 and is on course to register modest growth in Q4. But this turn-around has been... 14th November 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Making sense of the Andes construction boom Increased savings and investment levels have fuelled a surge in construction activity in Latin America’s Andean economies, helping to raise their long-run growth potential. But in a few countries... 7th November 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Argentina: populist policymaking raises default risk A recent ruling by a US court has raised questions over whether Argentina will be pushed into a fresh debt default. On closer inspection, the issue remains one of willingness to pay rather than... 30th October 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Should we be worried about Argentina’s provincial debt? Fears that the ‘pesofication’ of foreign currency debt by one Argentine province earlier this month will lead to a wave of local government defaults are overdone. Even so, the provinces face a funding... 25th October 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Chart Pack Currency concerns start to resurface The strength of local currencies is once again starting to trouble policymakers across Latin America. But while there has been a tendency to blame exchange rate appreciation on a third round of... 24th October 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Argentina: fiscal monetisation to drive inflation higher There are some parallels between the money printing being undertaken by Argentina’s central bank (BCRA) and quantitative easing policies in the West. But in contrast to the developed economies... 18th October 2012 · 1 min read