Economy & Business - May 2021

On 22 April, the deadline for final approval of this year’s federal government budget, Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro appeared to have squared the circle, signing off on a budget bill which preserves a constitutional spending cap while at the same time spreading enough money around to keep the so-called ‘centrão’ group of political parties happy, and on-side with his government.... Read More

Juan Carlos Montesinos, the president of a Venezuelan small-scale farmers’ association, Asociación Venezolana de Agricultura Familiar (Avaf), warned on 21 April that diesel shortages were leading to a loss of 3m litres of milk and 25,000 tonnes (t) of food a week.... Read More

On 11 April the former banker, Guillermo Lasso, was elected as the next president of Ecuador, defeating his left-wing correísta rival, Andrés Arauz, by 52.4%-47.6% in a far more decisive victory than pre-election polls had anticipated.... Read More

On 8 April, the ninth meeting of the Colombian council for the ‘orange economy’ (creative and cultural sectors) took place in the country’s capital, Bogotá.... Read More

PERU | Gov’t predicts strong economic recovery.... Read More

The Brazilian government’s rhetoric on privatisation has often exceeded the reality of a frequently delayed, bureaucratic, and highly politicised process.... Read More

Apart from criticising recent pension withdrawals, the final report of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) Article IV consultation on the Chilean economy, released on 23 April, was highly positive, praising “strong policies” to mitigate the negative effects of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.... Read More

Brazil-based ECB Group has announced a further postponement of its ambitious US$800m Omega Green bio-refinery project in Villeta, Paraguay.... Read More

Argentina’s electricity regulator Ente Nacional Regulador de la Eletricidad (Enre) introduced a 9% increase in the electricity tariffs charged in the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires (Amba) effective from 1 May.... Read More

PARAGUAY | Pandemic slows recovery prospects.... Read More

Central American economies have suffered deep recessions due to the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, pushing millions into poverty and threatening to spark social unrest, according to a series of recent reports.... Read More

Coffee prices have been rising in the last five months to March, according to the London-based International Coffee Organisation (ICO), reaching their highest monthly average since the 2017/2018 harvest.... Read More

On 28 April, Belize’s parliament approved a new national budget, the General Revenue Appropriation Bill for fiscal year 2021/22.... Read More

COSTA RICA | Unemployment dips.... Read More

Mexico’s national statistics institute (Inegi) on 30 April released its latest economic data for the first quarter of 2021.... Read More

Data published by Mexico’s national statistics institute (Inegi) on 7 May shows that both vehicle production and exports had significant growth rates in April after the sector suffered major disruption in 2020 because of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.... Read More

Mexico’s national statistics institute (Inegi) released its latest unemployment figures on 22 April, which show that this reached 3.89% in March, the lowest level so far in the year.... Read More

MEXICO | Trade deficit.... Read More