Growth prospects in the latin american economies
The Latin American countries that improved the most during the third quarter of 2020 are those that will continue to grow in 2021. Economic performance is influenced by previous growth, restrictions to avoid contagion from covid-19 and fiscal and monetary policies.
Costa Rica, Argentina, Jamaica, Ecuador and Chile had problems with large company exits, social unrest, dependence on the oil sector and tourism, making them the slowest rebounders in the third quarter of 2020. Mexico recovered a little less than half, the best performer among the least rebounding. Those that improved the most are Brazil, Nicaragua, Colombia and Peru.
The main risks to the 2021 improvement are: the evolution of the pandemic and vaccine availability; premature withdrawal of fiscal and monetary stimulus measures; global financial conditions allowing access to cheap financing; and the upward trend in commodity prices.