The exchange rates in most countries in Latin America underwent marked depreciations during the last two years of downturn in global trade. Real depreciations are generally expected to stimulate growth in exports, as when currencies depreciate, domestic goods become cheaper and more competitive abroad. … [Read more...] about Five Findings About the Impact of the Depreciations on Latin American Exports
Trade Facilitation
Islands of Value: looking beyond disruption
Imagine that in 1975, or some other time before the advent of the Internet, you wished to know the name of Isaac Newton's dog. Your only option would have been to go to a large library and start reading all of Newton's biographies one by one, crossing your fingers and hoping that one of his biographers would have been sufficiently interested in canine affairs as to mention … [Read more...] about Islands of Value: looking beyond disruption
Latin America Needs to Adapt to the Downshift in Global Trade
According to the latest issue of the IDB’s Trade and Integration Monitor, Latin America’s exports of goods shrunk at annualized rates of 14.8% in 2015 and 8.5% in the first seven months of 2016. Likewise, exports of services contracted for the first time since the financial crisis (-2.4% in 2015). This two-year downturn marks a contraction phase that is now longer than the one … [Read more...] about Latin America Needs to Adapt to the Downshift in Global Trade
From the Andes to the World: How a Peruvian Company Conquered Global Value Chains
We’ve all heard about health benefits of “super foods” such as quinoa, chia, and amaranth, but how many of us know the stories behind the companies that make it possible for us to buy these products? Find out more about a surprising company that managed to cross borders with the help of ConnectAmericas, the online platform run by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to … [Read more...] about From the Andes to the World: How a Peruvian Company Conquered Global Value Chains
Indirect Exports: A Simple Route to Internationalization for SMEs?
In practically every country in the world, the percentage of large companies that export is much higher than the share of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that do so. This is due, among other factors, to the fact that large companies tend to have higher profit margins than SMEs and can thus underwrite the additional costs associated with the export process (e.g., … [Read more...] about Indirect Exports: A Simple Route to Internationalization for SMEs?