Latin America Economics Update Brazil: Selic to remain in double-digits for foreseeable future The slight alteration to the Brazilian monetary policy committee’s (COPOM) statement suggests that we are now nearing the end of the current tightening cycle. But while there are unlikely to be... 28th November 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Chart Pack Growth relapses in the third quarter After staging a brief recovery in Q2, the Latin American economy appears to have suffered a relapse in the third quarter. Our calculations show that regional growth slowed to just 2.5% y/y in Q3, from... 27th November 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Fresh falls in Latin American currencies Latin American currencies have tumbled against the US dollar since mid-October and in many cases they are close to the lows that they reached during the height of this summer’s market sell-off... 15th November 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Brazil’s recovery fizzles out in Q3 The sharp pick-up in Brazilian growth in the second quarter of this year seems to have fizzled out in the third quarter. Indeed, it's possible that GDP data due to be released early next month will... 14th November 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Falling food inflation but core concerns persist in Brazil Slowing food inflation dragged headline inflation in most of Latin America last month, but that masks significant differences in the underlying outlook for inflation within the region. While inflation... 7th November 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Focus How much do external conditions matter to Latin America? Our new Indicator of Global Conditions suggests that most of the fluctuations in Latin American GDP growth over the past few decades can be explained by changes in the global macroeconomic backdrop... 4th November 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Mexico’s industrial recovery likely to outshine Brazil’s October’s manufacturing PMIs rose to exactly the same level in both Brazil and Mexico. But of the two economies, we suspect the recovery is more likely to be sustained in Mexico. 1st November 2013 · 1 min read
Emerging Markets Economics Update Time for greater differentiation in EM growth stories Our view that the major BRIC emerging markets were heading for a period of permanently weaker growth looked bold when we set it out a little over a year ago, but it has now been adopted by the... 30th October 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Chart Pack Inflation eases back Having picked up in several countries in the early part of this year, inflation has slowed in most of Latin America in recent months and is now back within its target range in each of the region's... 29th October 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Brazilian real has further to fall The decision by Brazil’s central bank to respond to what has been a relatively modest rebound in the real over the past month by scaling back some of its support for the currency suggests that... 25th October 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Surge in Argentine equities is not all good news Several recent developments, including the growing prospect of a political regime change, have combined to send Argentine asset prices soaring. But gains in Argentina's equity market are also... 24th October 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Debt overhang a risk on horizon for parts of Latin America Lending growth has continued to cool in most parts of Latin America over the course of 2013. Although the credit boom of the past decade has yet to be reflected in a significant rise in default rates... 23rd October 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Is Mexico losing its fiscal discipline? Plans to run a substantially wider budget deficit in 2014 have raised concerns that the Mexican government is losing fiscal discipline. But while a spending splurge is a major risk to an otherwise... 21st October 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Brazil: rebound in retail sales not as impressive as it first seems The sharp pick-up in Brazilian retail sales over the past couple of months has fuelled hopes that the country’s consumer-led growth model has kicked back into gear. We’re not so sure. While spending... 15th October 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Brazil interest rates heading back into double-digit territory Brazil raised interest rates by 50bps to 9.5% last night and the accompanying statement gave no hint that the recent falls in inflation might prompt policymakers to slow the pace of tightening. A... 10th October 2013 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Brazil and Mexican inflation falls despite currency weakness So far there is no evidence that weak currencies are pushing up inflation in Latin America. Inflation edged down in both Brazil and Mexico in September and it should fall further over the next six... 9th October 2013 · 1 min read