As of December 2019, IMAE recorded a 2.8% increase, partly due to the performance of the manufacturing and service sectors.
This result places the average annual growth in production at 1.9%, lower than the previous year's (2.6%), which, as the Central Bank has pointed out, reflects the economic slowdown experienced by the country since April 2016 and which reached its lowest point in May 2019, a situation caused by a combination of circumstances (uncertainty associated with the fiscal situation, external shocks to trade flows and adverse weather conditions), the official report explains.
With the 2.9% year-on-year change reported in the IMAE in November 2019, the economy has accumulated six consecutive months of acceleration.
The country's production, measured through the Monthly Index of Economic Activity (IMAE), registered a 2.9% year-on-year growth in November, the highest since July 2018, reported the Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR).
During October 2019, a 2.5% year-on-year variation was reported in the IMAE, a rise that is explained by the behavior of manufacturing activity and the service sector.
According to the report of the Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR), with the rise reported in the tenth month of the year, the Monthly Index of Economic Activity (IMAE) showed signs of recovery for the fifth consecutive month.
After year-on-year variations of 1.4% and 1.6%, respectively, will be reported in Costa Rica in July and August, in September the IMAE grew 2%, again explained by the performance of the special regimes manufacturing sector.
The growth of the Monthly Economic Activity Index (IMAE) in August was driven by the production of special regimes (free zone and active perfecting), which grew at a 12% year-on-year rate, according to information from the Central Bank of Costa Rica.
After the economies of the region grew by 2.6% in 2018 as a whole, the IMF estimates that 2019 would close with a rise of 2.7% and could reach 3.4% by 2020.
The document "World Economic Outlook", prepared by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), states that for Panama the projected growth of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for 2019 was reduced from 5% to 4.3%.
After recording a 1.4% year-on-year variation in July, in August the IMAE varied by 1.6%, again explained by the performance of the special regimes manufacturing sector.
The growth of the Monthly Economic Activity Index (IMAE) in August was driven by the production of special regimes (free zone and active perfecting), which grew at a 12.6% year-on-year rate, informed the Central Bank of Costa Rica.
After registering a 1.3% year-on-year variation in June, the Monthly Economic Activity Index in July reached 1.5%, which is mainly explained by the performance of the special regimes manufacturing sector.
After the first seven months of the year, average growth stood at 1.5%, while the average rate of the last twelve months was 1.8%, both lower than that recorded in the same period last year, reported the Central Bank of Costa Rica.
While in June the production of special regime companies increased 10% with respect to the same month in 2018, companies operating outside those regimes grew just 0.3%.
The Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR) reported that the production of special regimes (SR) companies grew 10.2% in June compared to the same month last year, as a result of increased external demand for medical implements, computer and business services.
In Costa Rica, the Monthly Economic Activity Index reported a 1.3% year-on-year increase in May, one of the lowest growth rates reported in recent years, since a similar variation had not been registered since November 2013.
The trend series of the Monthly Index of Economic Activity 1 registered in May 2019 a 1.3% year-on-year growth, which is lower by 2 percentage points (p.p.) to the same month of the previous year and by 0.2 p.p.
At a time of economic slowdown, companies must immediately review business models and identify opportunities arising from the creation of new market niches.
In Central America, during the first half of the year, at least four of the six economies reported declines in productive activity. The most dramatic case is that of Nicaragua, which in February recorded a 7% year-on-year drop in the Monthly Index of Economic Activity (MIEA), a situation reported since the political crisis began in April 2018.
In Costa Rica, the Monthly Economic Activity Index reported a 1.6% year on year increase in April, a variation that is lower than the 1.8% growth reported in March.
Excluding financial services and electricity and water, the rest of the economic activities grew less, or even had negative variations with respect to the previous year, as in the case of the agricultural industry, construction and trade, reported the Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR).
In Costa Rica, the Monthly Economic Activity Index reported a 1.8% year-on-year increase in March, and business, education, health and financial services accounted for 60% of the increase.
Compared with March 2018, most economic activities moderated their growth, which was reflected in the deceleration of the overall indicator. The agricultural industry and trade were the only ones to show a decline, explains a report by the Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR).
In February 2019 in Costa Rica the Monthly Index of Economic Activity reported a 1.7% year on year increase, mainly because of the behavior of construction and services.
In February 2019, the country's production, measured with the Monthly Economic Activity Index, registered a 1.7% year-on-year variation, higher by 0.12% (p.p.) than the data registered in December (month that presented the lowest growth of 2018).
During January 2019, the Monthly Index of Economic Activity in Costa Rica reported a 1.6% year-on-year increase, which is less than the 3.2% recorded in the same month last year.
With the exception of construction, all economic activities were less dynamic than in January 2018. The Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR) reported that agricultural activity and trade showed negative variations.
During November 2018, the Monthly Index of Economic Activity in the country reported a 2% year-on-year increase, which is less than the 3% increase recorded in October last year.
Compared with November 2017, most economic activities moderated their growth, which was reflected in the slowdown of the overall indicator. This result was determined by the deterioration in consumer confidence, a persistence of protest movements of some trade unions in opposition to the fiscal reform and problems in trade flows with Central America given the socio-political situation of Nicaragua, reported the Central Bank of Costa Rica.