Monday Memo: Brazil’s Economy – Argentine Debt – Tropical Storm Sonia – Honduran Police Abuses – Uruguayan Marijuana
Likely top stories this week: Brazil will reduce lending by 20 percent next year; Argentina wins a stay on its $1.33 billion payment; Tropical Storm Sonia Hits Mexico; Honduras’ police chief denies abuses; Brazilian delegation opposes Uruguayan marijuana legalization. Brazil to Reduce Lending Due to Budget Deficit: Brazilian Finance Minister Guido Mantega said Friday that … Read more
PRI Supports Tax Increase on Junk Food
Mexico’s ruling Partido Revolucionario Institucional (Institutional Revolutionary Party—PRI) announced its support on Wednesday for an opposition proposal to increase the 5 percent tax on junk food set out in President Enrique Peña Nieto’s fiscal reform plan. The tax would be applied to purchases of high-calorie foods including chocolates, sweets, puddings, potato chips and ice cream, … Read more
Cuba Announces End of Dual Currency System
Cuba approved a plan to gradually unify its dual monetary system, a statement carried by official newspaper Granma revealed yesterday. The measure is part of a set of reforms adopted by the Communist Party in 2011 aimed at introducing market mechanisms and decentralizing the Cuban economy. “(Unification) is imperative to guarantee the reestablishment of the … Read more
Capital Controls:Investment Flows in Latin America
Capital control policies in emerging market (EM) economies have fluctuated for the past two decades as markets have responded to changing global dynamics. This continues to be the case in 2013. The term capital controls refers to a wide array of tools policymakers use to limit the flow of capital in and out of their … Read more
Civic Innovator: Antonio Rodiles, Cuba
When Cuban physicist turned-political-activist Antonio Rodiles, 41, returned home in 2010 after spending 12 years studying in Mexico and the United States, he was immediately frustrated by the enduring limits on free speech. After a half-century of socialism, modernizing reforms known as “Lineamientos”(Guidelines ) had scaled back the public sector’s role in Cuba’s economy and … Read more
Business Innovator: Lenddo, United States and Colombia
Getting approval for a loan normally requires an extensive credit check to prove that the borrower is likely to pay it back. But in emerging markets across Latin America, even well-qualified, middle-class candidates often lack a credit history and bank accounts. That is, until Lenddo burst onto the scene in 2011. Founded by Jeff Stewart … Read more
El Guión Venezolano
La vida en Venezuela es imprevisible. No se sabe cuándo los bienes básicos llegarán a los anaqueles, ni cuánto tiempo un corte eléctrico puede dejar el país a oscuras. Desplazarse de una ciudad a otra—en un país de 916 mil kilómetros cuadrados—puede llevar una hora como cinco. Ni siquiera el crimen es organizado. En términos … Read more
Policy Updates
A snapshot of policy trends and successes in the region.
Latin America’s New Friend, Janet Yellen
Janet Yellen, nominated by President Obama last week to be the new chairwoman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, might not know it yet, but she has friends in high places in Latin America. This is because many in the region rightly believe that Yellen’s forecasted doveishness will give Latin America time to make the necessary … Read more
Monday Memo: Colombian Farmers Reach Deal – Capriles’ IACHR Case – Peña Nieto’s Reforms –Brazilian Protests – Colombia Peace Talks
Likely top stories this week: Colombian government and striking farmers reach a deal; Henrique Capriles takes Venezuela’s election results to the IACHR; Enrique Peña Nieto outlines his plans for reform; Brazilians protest again; and the Colombian government and FARC resume peace talks. Colombian Government Strikes Deal with Farmers: The Colombian government announced on Sunday that … Read more
Monday Memo: “La Bestia” Train Accident – FARC Negotiations – Venezuelan-Palestinian Oil Deal – New WTO Director – Mexico Energy Consultations
Likely top stories this week: Six people die in “La Bestia” train accident in Mexico; Colombia-FARC peace talks resume in Havana; Venezuela and Palestine sign energy deal; Roberto Azevêdo will become the new WTO director; and public consultations on energy reform begin in Mexico. Six Dead and 22 Injured in “La Bestia” Train Accident: On … Read more
Could an “Alternative” Candidate Win the Chilean Election?
Turmoil on the Right may open the door for a third party or independent presidential candidate—or pave the way for a Bachelet tsunami. A turbulent few weeks in Chilean politics have made for a seismic shift in the race for La Moneda. And with the debut of primary elections, voluntary voting and a clamor for … Read more
Rousseff Recalibrates
The boos that hailed down on Dilma Rousseff last month at the Confederations Cup are growing louder. Approval for the Brazilian president fell 26 percentage points in the last month, from 71 percent in June to 45 percent in July, according to a July 9–12 poll conducted by Instituto Brasileiro de Opinião Pública e Estatística … Read more
Reforma fiscal e equidade social by Fernando Rezende
For over a decade, Brazil has been a model of fiscal responsibility. Brazil’s success makes it easy to forget that it once suffered from one of the worst fiscal performances in Latin America, complicated by hyperinflation, short-lived currencies, and massive debt-to-GDP ratios. Today’s economic stability also makes it easy to assume that Brazil’s fiscal house … Read more
Emerging Debt Markets: Still on Strong Footing
The search for higher returns has drawn international investors in droves to emerging market debt and to Latin American debt markets, specifically during the past few years. Data collected by EPFR Global show that money flows toward emerging market bond funds quadrupled from 2011 to 2012—a trend that remained strong through May 2013. In Latin … Read more
