OBELA

The stoppage of economic activities, caused by the covid1 pandemic, seriously affected Latin American economies during the first semester of 2020, 8 years of production were lost.

On average, Latin America lost eight years of production, while China lost only one, the United States six and the European Union 11. China, Europe, Argentina, Colombia, Bolivia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, Paraguay, Peru and the Dominican Republic imposed mandatory quarantine.

The economic outcome of the infection prevention policies has been strongly determined by the economic growth of the last decade. When economic dynamics are low, the fall, driven by the closure of internal and external economic activities, causes a large contraction measured in terms of years of product. If the dynamics are high, a large fall leads only to a low reduction in production.

Rare lands are a strategic advantage for China. A large part of the reserves of these minerals are found in the Asian country. However, rare earth mining is highly polluting, so China has undertaken to limit its production.

It has imposed quotas on the volume of rare earth exports since 2010 so that it can take advantage of the world's dependence on this mineral. There are quotas on production, in addition to export quotas, which respond to both the inherent pollution of these materials and the incipient diversification of production.

Rare earth mining is a double-edged weapon for the environment, on the one hand, it means an important input; and on the other hand, the pollution it represents has been devastating for some regions in Asia.

The outbreak of COVID-19 began in China in late December 2019, with quarantine and confinement beginning in January. The health regulations stopped many global value chains, mainly those of pharmaceuticals, automobiles, aeronautics, electronics and telecommunications.

Faced with the problem, the Chinese government immediately implemented policies to prevent the economy from collapsing. What happened to the economy during the pandemic? Has it recovered?

Economic policy actions have mitigated the downturn and boosted the recovery of the Chinese economy. This makes it the only country in the world with a reliable "V" shape recovery, with real quarterly growth annualized in 2020.

El Banco Mundial informó que, como efecto de las contracción económica provocada por la pandemia del COVID, 2020 tendría la peor caída de remesas en América Latina y el Caribe en la historia. Las remesas representan una quinta parte del PIB de El Salvador y de Honduras, una décima parte para Guatemala y Nicaragua y menos del 5% para Belice, México, Costa Rica y Panamá.

En marzo de 2020 el desempleo latino fue del 6% y se triplicó ante la pandemia a 18.9% en abril. Las mujeres fueron las más perjudicadas. No obstate, las remesas para México y Centroamérica se recuperaron a partir de junio. ¿Por qué tan pronto?

Las proyecciones del Banco Mundial no se cumplen, afortunadamente para las familias mexicanas, centro y sudamericanas. Lo que está visto es que ser migrante y ser precario son sinónimos y que en caso de cualquier caída de producción es el primer grupo desempleado, pero en algunos casos con más rápida recuperación.

An increase in demand and use of land passenger transport has been observed. Its electrification is considered a plus for the environment and the economy. However, there is a debate about whether to take advantage of the lithium present on the ground or to invest in hydrogen production.

What is the best alternative in order to protect the environment and slow down climate change? Hydrogen is the most abundant and lightest element on Earth, but its molecule does not occur naturally in isolation. Lithium, different from H2, can be found in specific deposits. The most important is the "Lithium Triangle".

At present, there is no perfect energy source. Environmentally, the best alternative is H2 from water, which does not generate any pollutant after combustion. Its problem is that it is not yet economically or energetically viable.