Last year, economic activity and employment generation continued to rise, cumulative inflation reached 5.7% and international reserves were strengthened.
From a statement issued by the Central Bank of Nicaragua:
For the eighth consecutive year, Nicaragua continued to register a positive macroeconomic performance. Economic activity and job creation continued to grow and inflation remained stable, reaching a cumulative variation of 5.68 percent. The management of public finances continued to be prudent, international reserves were strengthened, while the financial system remained sound. An improved international context and good rainfall favored growth of exports, as well as an increase in the flow of family remittances and tourism which contributed to the strengthening of the country's external position.
For micro-enterprises, who usually do not have assets to offer as collateral, good payment history is the best asset in order to access credit.
In an article in Siglo21.com Francisco Madrid, general manager of Finsol, says "’If we are talking about small businesses and their difficulties in getting loans, from the standpoint of traditional banks we will find that their main difficulties are that they lack financial reports and do not having formal guarantees to support any loans. "
You can find data on national accounts, inflation, unemployment, payment balance, fiscal indicators, international trade and raw material prices.
The IMF published a series of selected macroeconomic data and raw material prices by country and region, with a two year projection, as part of the statistical appendix to the biannual report on global economic prospects.
Fitch expects that Latin America’s real GDP will contract by 0.9% in 2009, with Brazil’s economy stagnating at best and Mexico contracting by over 2%.
Latin American economies have recoupled with the crisis in the developed economies. Since September 2008, Latin American countries have been buffeted by stronger external headwinds, as evident from the fall in regional currencies and stock markets and from widening bond spreads.
A marked slowdown in economic growth and the increase in inflation keep the Nicaragua economy in stagflation.
In the context of an election process and a difficult global situation, this reveals a Nicaragua with a index of risk in the third quarter of the year, greater than for the same period in 2007.
This proposal made by Nestor Avendano, Ph.D in Economics, analyzes a situation which is already complex, indicating that there is a growing deficit in the balance of payment of the country, as a percentage of the expected production for this year which is cause by the rise in international prices in raw materials.