Latin American and Caribbean institutions moved forcefully to head off dangers in 2023. Central banks swiftly raised interest rates in the face of inflation, and governments imposed well-considered fiscal policies that brought average primary balances to a level superior to that before the COVID-19 pandemic. Along with strong financial regulation and supervision and resilient … [Read more...] about A New Report Stresses Reforms to Boost Productivity and Seize Markets in an Uncertain World
Arturo J. Galindo
Arturo José Galindo Andrade is a Principal Economist at the Research Department of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in Washington DC. Prior to joining the Research Department in 2021 he was a member of the Board of Directors of the Central Bank of Colombia. Arturo has also been a researcher at Fedesarrollo a Colombian think tank, Chief of the Strategic Planning and Monitoring Division at the IDB, Chief of the Strategic Development Division and Regional Economic Advisor for the Andean Region at the same institution. Previous roles include Chief Economic Advisor of the Banking Association of Colombia, Advisor to the Ministry of Finance, Advisor to the Government of Colombia on Coffee Affairs, Professor of Economics at Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia, Research Economist at the IDB, and Economist at the Central Bank of Colombia. Arturo holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His academic research includes macroeconomics, monetary policy, financial economics, banking, development banking, public finance, international economics and development economics—fields in which he has published extensively.
The Delicate Balance of Protecting Income While Fighting Inflation
With food inflation for a median country in Latin America and the Caribbean running at 14% in 2022, its highest level in 20 years and even core inflation -- excluding energy and food -- running at 7%, central banks in the region have been compelled to keep interest rates aloft. This has contributed to an important social goal because the poor spend the largest share of their … [Read more...] about The Delicate Balance of Protecting Income While Fighting Inflation
Preparing the Macroeconomic Terrain for Renewed Growth
Since 2020, the economies of the world have been hit by a series of severe shocks, most dramatically the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. As a result, after growing around 3.9% last year, Latin America and the Caribbean region now faces considerably lower growth projections for 2023, with private forecasters predicting growth at around 1%. It also … [Read more...] about Preparing the Macroeconomic Terrain for Renewed Growth
The Universal Factors Behind Inflation in Latin America and the Caribbean
With inflation in Latin America and the Caribbean running at its hottest in two decades, the issue of where that inflation comes from and what the region's central banks might do differently has taken on great urgency. Our newly released study arrives at a hugely important conclusion: the overwhelming bulk of inflation in the region today comes not from factors that are … [Read more...] about The Universal Factors Behind Inflation in Latin America and the Caribbean
Boosting Trade to Alleviate Pressures from the Russia-Ukraine Conflict
When war broke out between Russia and Ukraine at the end of February, businesses and governments in Latin America and the Caribbean worried that the war's disruptions would cause significant harm to the region's trade. What now seems clear is that rather than being deeply harmed, Latin America and the Caribbean has a significant opportunity to step in, relieve supply … [Read more...] about Boosting Trade to Alleviate Pressures from the Russia-Ukraine Conflict