The World Bank predicts that by the end of this year Panama and the Dominican Republic will be the economies of the region that will grow the most, and the countries that will report the lowest increases in their production will be Costa Rica and Nicaragua.
After the region's economies were considerably affected in 2020 by the sanitary crisis generated by the Covid-19 outbreak, the outlook of international organizations for 2021 is encouraging.
The drop in production is explained by the performance of activities that were affected by the emergence of the covid-19 pandemic in March 2020, a situation that lasted for the rest of the year.
The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) valued at constant 2007 prices registered, according to calculations of the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC), an amount of $35,308.7 million, which corresponded to a decrease of $7,724.1 million, according to an official report.
In the critical context of this year, the resilience of remittances and exports, added to the decline in oil prices, would have somewhat shielded the Guatemalan economy, whose GDP would fall only 2% by the end of 2020.
The programs in response to Covid-19 (Bono Familia, Fondo de Protección al Empleo, Fondo de Crédito para Capital de Trabajo), along with the temporary restructuring of loans by the banking system, are helping to sustain household income and business liquidity, the multilateral agency reported after making its last visit.
According to the Central Bank, this year the Costa Rican economy will contract by 4.5%, an estimate that would be optimistic in the current context of fiscal and economic crisis, uncertainty, distrust and lack of decisions in the transcendental issues facing the country.
The recent results of local production and the new estimates of global economic activity have allowed the Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR) to revise its economic growth projections for the country: the economic contraction for 2020 is expected to moderate to 4.5%, from the 5.0% predicted in the 2020-2021 Macroeconomic Program Review of last July. For 2021, an annual increase in production of 2.6% is projected, a figure 0.3 percentage points (p.p.) higher than that also announced in July.
For the international organization, after the economic slowdown in 2018-2019, the economy is expected to recover in 2020 and will continue to be among the most dynamic in Latin America.
In the medium term, growth is expected to stabilize at its potential annual rate of 5% and inflation is also expected to rise to 1% in 2020, reported the International Monetary Fund after its last visit to the country.
Agriculture, livestock, forestry and fisheries, and financial intermediation largely determined the 2.4% increase in GDP in the third quarter of last year, compared to the same period in 2018.
Agriculture, Livestock, Forestry and Fishing registered a 2.6% increase, mainly because of the rise in the Gross Added Value (GVA) of coffee cultivation as a result of reseeding, maintenance and fertilization in the farms during the third quarter, informed the Central Bank of Honduras (BCH).
Private services, manufacturing industries and wholesale and retail trade explained part of the 3% year-on-year increase reported in gross GDP in the period from April to June 2019.
Financial intermediation, insurance and auxiliary activities, and Construction were other economic activities contributing to the growth of the Gross Domestic Product for the quarter in question.
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%.
According to business sector estimates, this year the Panamanian economy will grow around 5.4%, below the rate of 6.5%, considered optimal.
The Center for Economic Studies at the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture of Panama (CEECAM), has prepared a study detailing Panama's economic performance, a review of sector indicators and economic and business expectations.
Economic activity grew by 4.3% at the end of the second quarter, with the sectors Agriculture and Private Services achieving the best results.
From the report by the Bank of Guatemala:
In the second quarter of 2014, economic activity measured by estimating real GDP showed a growth of 4.3% (4.7% in the same quarter of the previous year) as a result of the growth recorded by components in demand, among which were private consumption expenditure, recovery of investment in fixed capital and the observed growth in the volume of exports and imports of goods and services.
Driven by exports from free zones and stable prices, the country's growth has exceeded all expectations.
The main exports were from the electronics industry, represented mainly by Intel. Foreign sales from this sector increased by 43% in the first 6 months of 2012 compared with the same period last year, and contributed more than 25% to the total export growth.
The IMAE was 9.73% and 9.26% in January and February 2012, the best bimonthly performance in the last three years.
Capital.com.pa describes this rate of growth as being "driven mainly by the good performance of sectors such as transport, storage and communications, construction, hotels and restaurants, mining and quarrying, trade and financial intermediation."
Statistical information compiled by the Banco de Guatemala has been released, which includes general indicators of real, external, monetary, financial and fiscal indicators.
"Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew 3.9 percent in 2011, according to the latest review by the Bank of Guatemala (Banguat) confirming an improvement in the performance of productive activities."
The Honduran Economists Association sees indicators pointing to a reactivation of the national economy.
Even before the political crisis of June 2009, the economy was dealing with the international economic crisis, which caused an 8% drop in the gross domestic product. From October 2008 to December 2009 economic activity shrank, triggering the loss of 200.000 jobs.
In the second quarter of the year, the IMAE index grew at an annualized rate of 5.9%. In the first quarter it had dropped 0.9%.
In June the Monthly Economic Activity Index (IMAE) grew 0.34%. For the past 12 months it contracted 2.2%, less than the 2.8% drop registered in May. The highest 12 month contraction was -5.1%, recorded in February 2009.
For the second quarter of the year, the index grew at an annualized rate of 5.9%, while it dropped -0.9% in the first quarter of the year. Accordingly, in the first half of the year economic activity diminished 3.9% when compared to the same period of 2008.