As it does every year, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) has published its Preliminary Overview of the Economies of Latin America and the Caribbean, presenting data current at November 30th, 2017.

This year, ECLAC has analyzed the region’s 2017 economic performance in the international context, looking at the export sector, employment, wages and macroeconomic policies put in place by its member countries.

The report highlights that the momentum of raw material prices, which it sees as an important determinant for Latin American and Caribbean economies, has been positive in 2017, recovering from its 2016 results, and predicts that these levels will hold in 2018.

It also shows the increase in the rate of women’s presence on the labor market, which reveals a slight reduction of the participation and occupation gaps between women and men, but not in the unemployment gap.

Likewise, the report acknowledges that tax consolidation has been the main feature of changes in fiscal policy in the region over 2017. It notes that average inflation in the region continued to drop during the first ten months of the year, so current levels are the lowest since the end of 2013.   

Finally, it flags up the outlook and challenges for 2018, forecasting that 2018 performance will remain buoyant, while pointing to the trend in financial deregulation as one of the challenges.