Economy & Business - April 2025

US President Donald Trump’s tariff war has been described as the biggest blow to the global trade order in a century.... Read More

Colombia’s economy has seen better days and events in March did not exactly boost confidence for any meaningful improvement.... Read More

Bolivia continues to struggle with petrol fuel shortages, with the government of President Luis Arce citing low reserves of hard currency as the primary obstacle to increasing imports to meet demand.... Read More

Venezuela’s electricity ministry announced on 24 March that for a period of six weeks, public sector workers would have a reduced working day of 8am-12.30pm, with exceptions for those in essential roles.... Read More

PERU | IMF praise.... Read More

The administration of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is redoubling its efforts to kick-start Brazil’s economy ahead of next year’s general elections.... Read More

REGION | Southern Cone countries shore up international ties.... Read More

On 26 February the executive board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) confirmed that it had approved a financing agreement worth US$1.4bn for El Salvador.... Read More

On 1 March the power went out throughout Honduras, the latest sign of ongoing fragility in the electricity system despite government promises to overhaul the energy sector.... Read More

Trinidad & Tobago’s Prime Minister Stuart Young announced this month that the US had revoked special licences for the development of two offshore natural gas projects between Trinidad & Tobago and Venezuela: Dragon, which was being developed by British multinational oil firm Shell and Trinidad’s state-owned Natural Gas Company (NGC), and Cocuina-Manakin, which was being developed by NGC and British multinational BP.... Read More

The St Lucia economy had a strong year in 2024 but the pace is now set to slow as the government struggles with heavy debt levels.... Read More

In February Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali, who also coordinates Caribbean Community (Caricom) initiatives on agriculture and food security, told a meeting of regional leaders in Georgetown that despite some progress Hurricane Beryl and global supply chain disruption was continuing to disrupt efforts to improve nutrition in the Caribbean region.... Read More

REGION | Mulling a response to US tariffs.... Read More

Mexico’s government led by President Claudia Sheinbaum is likely breathing a sigh of relief after securing exemption from US President Donald Trump’s global tariff onslaught on 2 April.... Read More

Mexico’s poverty rate has fallen dramatically since the turn of the century.... Read More

Mexico’s influential Coordinadora Nacional de Trabajadores de la Educación (CNTE) teachers’ union is preparing to start indefinite strike action, despite the fact that President Claudia Sheinbaum withdrew a controversial reform to the federal public workers’ social security institute (ISSSTE) in March.... Read More

MEXICO | Vehicle exports drop in Q1.... Read More