Economy & Business - September 2025

The first round of Bolivia’s presidential election on 17 August saw a total collapse for the ruling left-wing Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS), with its candidate Eduardo del Castillo finishing in sixth place with just 3.17% of the vote, narrowly surpassing the 3% cut-off below which a party loses its legal status.... Read More

When the presidents of Venezuela and Colombia announced a huge binational economic zone along much of the northern part of their joint border, eyebrows were raised in Caracas and Bogotá alike.... Read More

PERU | Interest rate cut.... Read More

When Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva returned to the presidency of Brazil in early 2023, he promised to end the predatory environmental practices promoted by his predecessor Jair Bolsonaro (2019-2023), particularly in the Amazon rainforest.... Read More

Chile’s already divisive political landscape has become even more polarised before the first round of presidential elections on 16 November, heightening the possibility of far-reaching changes to economic policy in one of South America’s most developed countries.... Read More

A deadly accident at the largest mine of Chilean copper giant Codelco has forced the state-owned company to cut production forecasts for this year and raised doubts about its long-term expansion plan.... Read More

Argentina’s President Javier Milei made headlines during his 2023 election campaign by promising to shut down the central bank (BCRA) and eliminate the national currency in favour of the US dollar.... Read More

CHILE | Chile hails signing of first special lithium operation contract.... Read More

Visitor numbers have fallen this year, sparking worries around the future of Costa Rica’s tourism sector, a significant driver of the country’s economy and a huge provider of jobs.... Read More

President Bernardo Arévalo met with Mexican counterpart Claudia Sheinbaum in Guatemala’s Petén department on 15 August, with the pair agreeing to work together on development, security, energy, and railway projects, as well as migration.... Read More

On 12 August Trinidad & Tobago’s energy minister, Roodal Moonilal, announced that his government had signed a production sharing contract (PSC) with US company Exxon Mobil covering seven ultra deepwater offshore blocks which, if oil and gas is discovered, could potentially attract investment worth up to US$21.7bn.... Read More

“We must decisively open the door to greater trade between our regions” said Caribbean Community (Caricom) Secretary-General Carla Barnett while attending the AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum in Grenada at the end of July.... Read More

The latest numbers from Cuba’s national statistics institute (Onei) show that Cuban hotel occupancy dropped by nearly seven percentage points in the first half of this year to 21.5%, while tourist arrivals slumped by 25% to 981,856.... Read More

PANAMA | Panama Canal Authority projects fall in revenue.... Read More

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum made her administration’s economic achievements a highlight of her first annual state-of-the-nation address, or Informe, which she delivered on 1 September.... Read More

Mexico’s construction industry has called for public infrastructure investment to be doubled after sounding the alarm that the country is woefully unprepared for the 2026 Fifa World Cup, which it will host jointly with the US and Canada.... Read More

On 13 August Mexico’s national statistics institute (Inegi) published new data showing that 8.3m Mexicans were lifted out of poverty from 2022 to 2024.... Read More

MEXICO | Annual inflation edges up.... Read More