The road infrastructure investment plan announced by the Alvarado administration includes, among other things, the allocation of $350 million for the San José-San Ramón, San José-Cartago, and San Carlos road routes.
From a statement issued by the Ministry of Public Works:
"These projects will be financed with existing resources of unutilised credit and with the public-private partnership scheme, so they will not put pressure on public finances.
An announcement from Moody's confirms the limited room for maneuver left to the country when obtaining external financing, compromising access to credit for the private sector.
Costa Rica has received a new warning over a possible lack of access to funds in the international market with which to alleviate its growing fiscal deficit. After China's decision not to buy $1 billion in bonds , the rating agency Moody's anticipates a rise in interest rates in the country and a deterioration of credit and growth.
Facing a serious and growing fiscal deficit, the Solís administration has presented the 2015 spending plan for the central government which is 19% higher than that of 2014.
Even though the fiscal deficit up to July is already located at 3% of GDP, the government has decided to increase the state budget for 2015 by 19%, which added to the 4% increase approved for public wages and 14% increase in the resources paid to state universities, threatens to push up interest rates and further complicate the economic scenario.
The country is spending more and more in interest payments for the government's debt, which in 2013 rose to represent 2.6% of GDP.
In 2013 the interest paid by government debts rose by 29%, reaching 2.6 % of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). If the expectations of the Ministry of Finance are correct, the financial situation could become more complicate in 2014, as it is anticipated that this financial obligation would reach 2.9% of GDP.
Private banks operate with margins between interest rates which are considerably lower than state banks.
An article in Elfinancierocr.com points out that "the five banks with the lowest margins in the country are private ones, as is clear from a study by EF based on data reported to the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (Sugef) for December, 2012 ".
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