After six months of closing the borders to commercial flights, air transport has been reactivated from September 18 with the arrival of four aircraft from the United States.
At the beginning of September, the Presidential Commission for Emergency Attention Covid-19 (COPRECOVID) had anticipated that the reactivation of operations at La Aurora and Mundo Maya International Airports would be carried out under the health protocols endorsed by health authorities and recommendations from International Civil Aviation.
Although in Central America the period of mandatory confinement has been exceeded, it is still a priority for consumers in the region to spend their free time in their homes and to devote themselves to household cleaning and home cooking.
It has been six months since the first cases of covid-19 were detected in the region.
After the unemployment rate in the United States fell from 15% to 8% between April and August, it became evident that at the beginning of the crisis the capacity of recovery that the North American country could develop was underestimated and it is expected that this behavior could boost the economic activity in Central America.
During the first half of 2020, when the first cases of covid-19 began to be reported in the region, forecasts noted that the recovery of economic activity would be excessively slow, due to a significant drop in consumption globally.
With the change in the configuration of the markets and businesses, companies must think clearly, adapt to the new rules of the game and avoid, as far as possible, immediately implementing the policy of low prices.
The economic crisis resulting from the outbreak of covid-19 has changed the rules of the game in the markets at a global level. Some companies, in their attempt to stay in business, have opted to lower their prices, even to levels where they could incur losses.
Although the sector keeps its operations alive thanks to the packaging they produce for the food and cleaning industry, there is uncertainty among entrepreneurs as the demand for bags, brushes, tableware, furniture and other products has contracted.
As a result of the home quarantines that were decreed in the countries of the region in March 2020 due to covid-19, the outlook for the plastics industry fluctuates between optimism and uncertainty in market behavior.
After the IMAE in Guatemala registered a -11% year-on-year variation in May of this year, during June and July the production contractions were lower, reporting falls of 7% and 5%, in that order.
The Bank of Guatemala reported that in the current economic crisis that emerged due to the spread of covid-19, the activities that have most boosted the drop in production are trade, tourism and transportation.
In Guatemala, for the months when the quarantine was most severe, sales of live cattle were cut in half due to movement restrictions, lack of transportation, and market closures.
Due to the covid-19 outbreak, authorities agreed to impose severe restrictions on the circulation of people during April, May, June, and July, including total closures of the economy during several weekends.
Berries, cherries and citrus fruits, fruits that due to their vitamin C content are generally associated with positive effects on the immune system, reported increases in sales in the US and European markets during March, April and May 2020.
In this context of new consumption habits, which emerged worldwide due to the outbreak of covid-19, banana sales (due to its high potassium content and its contributions to health) have been extremely positive.
Given the need to understand customer behavior in the digital environment, together with the urgency for companies to promote remote work, an ideal scenario has been created for the demand for cloud services to increase exponentially.
The spread of covid-19 caused a considerable change in people's habits.
As part of the gradual reopening of commercial activities, an increase in the number of people who have moved to locations identified as supermarkets or pharmacies was reported in Central American countries during August.
Due to the quarantines decreed by the covid-19 outbreak, in mid-April the concentration of people in residential areas of cities reached its highest level, but in recent months this trend has been reversed and consumers have visited more stores. During August, the process of returning to supermarkets accelerated in most markets.
Arguing that the health of the nation's inhabitants is a public good and that institutions are required to ensure its conservation and restoration, the government will regulate the prices of several medicines.
After 20 years of operation, Modas B.I. Apparel, a company specialized in the manufacture of clothing, decided to close its doors due to the economic crisis caused by the outbreak of covid-19.
The company operated an industrial plant that employed 800 workers and was located at Kilometer 8 of the Atlantic Highway, in the jurisdiction of the Department of Guatemala.
In the new business scenario consumers have increased the demand for household disinfection products, fruits, vegetables, vitamins and medicines, consumption patterns that could be maintained in the medium and long term.
When the first cases of covid-19 were reported in Central America in March, the first reaction of people was to make compulsive purchases. Some of the products that were purchased in excess during March and April now record a drop in sales and are facing a time of contraction in demand.
The commitment to long term rentals instead of vacation rentals, preference for larger residences and innovation in the marketing tools of the projects under development are some of the changes expected in the coming months, which could set a new pattern in the sector.
The health crisis caused by the spread of covid-19 ended up changing consumer habits in all Central American markets. In this scenario the real estate market is no exception. This sector will have to adjust to take advantage of the opportunities generated by the current crisis.
Focusing the skills of employees according to new opportunities and approving laws that allow for more flexible labor agreements are some of the proposals being discussed in Guatemala for companies to face the new labor reality.
Following the economic crisis that caused the outbreak of covid-19, the recovery and generation of jobs is one of the issues that occupies much of the attention of the government in Guatemala.
Recognized Brazilian company of backhoe loaders, telescopic, articulated and other types of cranes looking for companies interested in representing the brand and distributing their machinery in Central America and Mexico. The company manufactures and sells telescopic,...
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