Latin America Economics Update Chile: growth strong, but increasingly unbalanced Q4 GDP data show that the underlying pace of growth in Chile has started to ease. Nonetheless, it is the unbalanced nature of growth – and principally the strength of domestic demand – that is the big... 18th March 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economic Outlook The return of inflation? The growth outlook for Latin America remains good but inflation looks set to accelerate over the coming quarters. Further policy tightening is likely in most countries, although in most cases the... 16th March 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Concerns over inflation to push Peruvian rates higher Last night the Central Reserve Bank of Peru (BCRP) hiked interest rates by 25bps to 3.75%, as expected. With the outlook for inflation deteriorating interest rates look set to rise further over the... 11th March 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Mexico's job recovery yet to feed into higher wages Mexico’s labour market is on the mend. But while employment has picked up and the quality of new jobs seems to be improving, this has yet to translate into a pick-up in pay growth. 10th March 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Inflation pressures are building, but commodity shock temporary The recent pick up of commodity prices, notably food, will probably drive inflation higher than we had previously expected this year. The good news is that the effects of the commodity price shock... 9th March 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Assessing the winners and losers from the oil price spike The recent spike in oil prices will impact on different economies within Latin America in different ways. Although it is difficult to say with any great precision, the biggest winner is likely to be... 7th March 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Brazilian consumers still going strong Brazil’s economy grew at a slower-than-expected pace in Q4 but the more worrying news is that the drivers of growth are becoming increasingly unbalanced. 3rd March 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Bounce in Brazilian industry not a game changer The modest rebound in Brazilian industrial production in January is good news and the surveys suggest that output picked up further over the course of last month too. But the bigger picture remains... 2nd March 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Consumers continue to drive growth in Chile Last month’s slowdown in Chilean retail sales growth, coupled with a pick-up in the manufacturing sector, will help to ease mounting concerns about the unbalanced nature of recent growth. But in... 28th February 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Chart Pack Policymakers tighten the screw As inflation continues its steady rise, policymakers across Latin America are tightening the screw. Interest rates were increased in Chile, Colombia and Peru earlier this month and are likely to be... 28th February 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Trapped in the impossible trinity Policymakers in Latin America face an awkward choice. Either they must fight inflation with stronger currencies but at the expense of a squeeze on domestic manufacturers, or they can limit currency... 24th February 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Venezuelan economy still struggling to recover The Venezuelan economy finally returned to positive annual growth in Q4 last year. But while the recent rally in oil prices has eased the country’s dollar drought and should support GDP growth of 1%... 23rd February 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Nudging up our forecasts for Mexican growth Mexico’s Q4 GDP data (released this afternoon) were stronger than expected. With renewed fiscal stimulus in the US likely to give a further boost to the recovery over the coming quarters, we are... 21st February 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Chilean rates to rise further The Central Bank of Chile (CBC) hiked interest rates by 25bps to 3.5% last night. Growing economic imbalances and the threat of higher inflation mean that rates will rise further over the coming... 17th February 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Focus Is Venezuela approaching crunch time? While the rest of Latin America is experiencing bumper capital inflows, Venezuela is gripped by a dollar drought. With President Chavez seeking re-election in December 2012, there is a growing risk... 17th February 2011 · 1 min read
Latin America Economics Update Brazilian growth remains two-speed It is tempting to attribute the stagnation in Brazilian retail sales in December to recent efforts to curb credit growth but in truth the impact of these measures is unlikely to show up in the data... 15th February 2011 · 1 min read
