São Paulo – Exports from Latin America were down 9.1% in quarter one (Q1) this year from Q1 2014, says a report issued this Tuesday (2nd) by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). The decline reflects the deteriorating export performance observed since late 2014, according to IDB material. Last year, foreign sales had dropped 2.7%.
The report on Latin American Trade Trend Estimates says foreign sales reduction was widespread and affected virtually all countries in the region. Andean countries saw the highest decline, at 19.2%. The second biggest drop was in the Mercosur, at 13.7%, and the third was in Central America and the Dominican Republic, at 4.6%. Exports declined the least in Mexico, down 0.4%. The IBD report covers 17 countries and splits Latin America into four regions: Andean Countries, Mercosur, Central America & Dominican Republic, and Mexico.
Individually, only three economies had an increase in exports year-on-year in Q1, according to the bank. Honduras exports increased the most, at 12%, followed by El Salvador at 10.8% and Guatemala at 4.5%. Foreign sales declined the most in Colombia, down 30,2%, and Bolivia, down 28.6%. Brazilian exports saw a 13.7% slowdown, the IDB says.
The financial institution enumerates several contributing factors to the scenario, including the rising dollar and declining prices of commodities such as petroleum, but notes that the downward trend is in line with the current dynamics of global trade, which was down 11.6% in Q1 2015 from Q1 2014.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
