Latin America 2015: Macro Outlook

The GDP and inflation outlook this year in 19 Latin American countries.

BY LATINVEX STAFF

Latin America will see big macro-economic differences this year, with Panama and Venezuela representing the two extremes. The first, with an estimated GDP growth of 6.4 percent and the latter a 2.0 percent decline.

Similarly, when it comes to inflation, Venezuela will have the highest rate (63 percent), which is more than 30 times that of El Salvador, the country that will likely see the lowest rise in consumer prices this year.

All in all, Latin America’s economies will underperform the global average this year, while inflation will be nearly twice as high as the world average.

The combined GDP of Latin America is expected to grow by 2.2 percent this year, according to estimates from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). The World Bank is more pessimistic, estimating growth at only 1.7 percent this year.

All figures, however, are lower than the world average of 3.8 percent and compare with an expected US GDP expansion of 3.1 percent and only 1.8 percent in the European Union, according to the IMF.

Here is a country-by-country breakdown.

ARGENTINA

Argentina – Latin America’s third-largest economy --