Latin America Economics Update Peruvian rates set to remain on hold throughout 2013 Peru kept interest rates on hold at 4.25% last night after a fall in food inflation brought the headline rate down to target for the first time since mid-2011. Looking forward, with the scope for... 7th 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 Colombian easing cycle not yet over Colombian interest rates will probably fall further next year as external headwinds cause GDP growth to slow. By contrast, a weaker global economy could be helpful for Peru, where the latest economic... 26th 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 Peru still among region’s fastest growing economies September’s activity data show that Peru remains among the region’s fastest growing economies and it seems that GDP probably grew by 6.5% y/y in Q3. We expect Peru to be one of Latin America’s best... 15th November 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Peru: further tightening to come via reserve requirements Last night’s central bank meeting in Peru provided further evidence that policymakers are not considering rate hikes despite vigorous domestic demand and credit growth. Instead, concerns over the... 9th 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 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 Peru keeps rates on hold as currency concerns resurface The Central Reserve Bank of Peru (BCRP) kept interest rates at 4.25% last night and is unlikely to make any changes to its benchmark rate until well into 2013. Concerns about the strength of the... 12th October 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Brazil's housing market: slowing but not stalling The surge in Brazilian property prices seen over the past few years appears to be slowing, but the housing market still looks significantly overvalued – perhaps by as much as 30-50%. In this month’s... 9th October 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Focus How far has the inflation outlook deteriorated? As things stand, the spike in global food prices since early June is likely to push up annual inflation in Latin America by around 0.5-1.0%-pts over the next six months or so. But while this is likely... 3rd October 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Chart Pack Stimulus starting to take hold in Brazil There are signs that policy stimulus is starting to take hold in Brazil. Retail sales are growing, car sales hit a record high in August and even output in the beleaguered industrial sector has... 27th September 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update A closer look at regional growth 2012 has been a year of mixed fortunes for Latin America’s largest economies. In Chile and Peru, growth has bounced back following a minor wobble in late 2011 and both countries are currently... 13th September 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Peruvian monetary policy bias gets a little tighter Peru kept rates on hold last night, but a moderate tightening bias may emerge in the months ahead. As it happens, we suspect that rates will remain unchanged for the rest of 2012 as a stronger growth... 7th September 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Chart Pack Persistent imbalances in the drivers of growth Growth is still unbalanced in many parts of Latin America. The resilience of domestic demand against a weak global backdrop has helped to bolster service sector activity, even as local industry... 30th August 2012 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Peru: growth strong, but becoming unbalanced While Peru’s economy held up better than most of its peers in the first half of this year, the drivers of growth are becoming increasingly unbalanced. With domestic demand starting to show signs of... 28th August 2012 · 1 min read