Time To Act - Latin America and the Caribbean Facing Strong Challenges

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is proud to present the 2016 Latin American and Caribbean Macroeconomic Report: Time to Act: Latin America and the Caribbean Facing Strong Challenges, presented by its coordinator, Andrew Powell, Principal Advisor at the IADB Research Department.

Global growth has continued to disappoint and China is slowing. The commodities boom that once buoyed the region’s economies is over and US interest rates have started to rise. Some countries in Latin America have seen steep exchange rate depreciations that may aid competitiveness but have prompted increasing inflation limiting the use of low policy interest rates to boost growth. Fiscal space has also been reduced such that many countries are now adjusting even as output has fallen below potential. Countries in Central America and the Caribbean are benefitting from low oil prices and stronger US growth.

This year’s Latin American and Caribbean Macro Report surveys the challenges facing the region in a new era of lower commodity prices and a continued weak global recovery. The report argues that more a fundamental revision of fiscal policies is warranted, offers an innovative analysis of exchange rates and competitiveness and analyzes various risks including the state of corporate balance sheets, suggesting how policymakers can reduce risks and protect the many improvements in social indicators of recent years.

Andrew Powell will be joined by David Lubin, Managing Director and Head of Emerging Markets Economics at CitiBank, as a discussant on the issue.

THIS EVENT IS NOW FULLY BOOKED.