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This was revealed by the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Alicia Barcena at the presentation of the yearly Preliminary Overview on the performance of the region's economies, for the year running.
However, 2009 was a bad year. The Latin American and Caribbean economies contracted at an average yearly rate of 1.8 percent, equivalent to a decrease of almost 3 percent in per capita income.
As usual, regional averages hide individual performances. For instance, the economies of the Caribbean, Central America and Mexico were more affected by the contraction, than those of South America, mainly due to their proximity to the United States.
Further, this year's negative economic performance interrupted the previous six years of sustained economic growth, at a quite respectable average yearly rate of around 5 percent.
However, this time, the region was better prepared to withstand the external shock. ECLAC identified some of the factors which contributed to this strength, such as healthier macroeconomic policies, the rebound in some commodity prices and the countercyclical policies adopted to cope with the crisis.
Source: Hispanic Business | Isaac Cohen
