Commodity prices and capital movement phenomena in emerging economies

The different fluctuations recorded in the balance of payments of emerging economies reflect the vulnerability of these economies, dependent as they are on the balance of capital and trade flows. This study analyses the relationship between commodity prices and some capital movement phenomena in a group of selected emerging economies. Probit and cloglog models are estimated to establish the likelihood of these phenomena occurring and their main determinants over the period from 1995 to 2016. The results allow us to identify the main global and country-level factors shaping the phenomena, as we…

Inequalities and participation in the digital society: online experiences among children and adolescents in Brazil and Chile

This paper presents a comparative analysis of the Global Kids Online research network data from Brazil and Chile in 2016 relating to children’s digital access, uses and skills. Results show that high-frequency users tend to be from higher socioeconomic groups. Girls and higher-income children perceive higher levels of risk on the Internet. The most common areas of use are related to learning and social life. The type of guidance that children receive matters: active mediation strategies at home and school are vital for increasing children’s digital opportunities, while restrictive mediation te…

The systemic nature of technological development: similarities between the neo-Schumpeterian school and Fernando Fajnzylber’s approach

This article seeks to draw connections between Fernando Fajnzylber’s approach and certain elements of the neo-Schumpeterian systemic approach to innovation, to show that there is longstanding discussion of many of the ideas underlying the development of both approaches in a variety of contexts. The results of the analysis revealed six similar features: the historical determinants of technological development; the similarity between the elements that sustain long-term technical progress; the relationship between technological development and the “non-economic spheres”; the relationship between …

Effects of higher commodity prices on exports of manufactures: the case of Brazil

This study seeks to determine whether the increased earnings of Brazil’s trading partners that benefited from the boom in commodity prices during the 2000s spurred Brazilian exports of manufactures to those countries. It begins with the hypothesis that there is a positive link between Brazil’s exports of manufactured goods and the increased revenues of its trading partners derived from the robust performance of their exports of natural resources. A two-stage hierarchical statistical model based on a panel data structure is used to estimate a crosss-section data model. To our knowledge, this st…

CEPAL Review No. 137

Firm-level innovation, government policies and the middle-income trap: insights from five Latin American economies

Latin American economies need higher productivity to escape from the middle-income trap. This article analyses the drivers of innovation at the firm level, which is a critical driver of productivity growth. The article estimates a two-stepmodel where firm characteristics affect firm engagement with innovation inputs, and such engagement then generates innovation outputs. We use World Bank Enterprise Survey data to analyse this two-stage process for a pooled panel of matched firms in 2006, 2010 and 2017 for five Latin American economies (Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay). The find…

The Argentine automotive chain since the convertibility crisis: an analysis of its evolution and principal problems (2002–2019)

The aim of this article is to analyse the main characteristics of the Argentine automotive sector and its performance during the first part of the twenty-first century. The article begins by describing the essential aspects of the links in the chain. It then provides a brief historical overview of the Argentine automobile industry from its beginnings until the convertibility crisis of late 2001. Lastly, it analyses the evolution of the sector in the subsequent stages, those of post-convertibility (2002–2015) and the Cambiemos government (2015–2019). This review is based on the specialist liter…

Uncertainty and economic growth: evidence from Latin America

This paper explores the effect of uncertainty on economic growth in Latin American from 1960 to 2016. Uncertainty is found to be positively correlated to inflation and the volatility of three macroeconomic variables: inflation rate, GDP and the real exchange rate. The empirical evidence indicates that uncertainty is detrimental for growth, particularly at higher levels. In line with existing consensus in the literature, the results appear to show that macroeconomic instability has been a major hindrance explaining the poor economic performance of the region. Economic policy recommendations inc…

The Hummingbird Vol. 9 No. 8

Economic complexity and human development: comparing standard and slack-based data envelopment analysis models

Several studies have argued economic complexity is an alternative way to understand well-being. There is a growing literature using standard data envelopment analysis (DEA), but we did not find studies comparing them with more advanced models, such as slack-based measure (SBM), or considering economic sophistication as an input in human development. To fill the gap, this article aims to compare standard models with SBM DEA models as tools for measuring countries’ efficiency in converting economic complexity into human development. We developed the Composite Index of Human Development and Econo…

Production and enterprise profitability in Ecuador’s crop-growing sector

This article analyses the key determinants of enterprise profitability in Ecuador’s crop-growing sector in 2007–2017. It presents data showing that productivity has a positive effect on the profitability of the firms in the sector, which suggests that higher productivity confers a competitive advantage that is reflected in higher profit levels. In contrast, capital stock, land valuation, foreign direct investment, exports and firm age are variables that are negatively related to profitability. Lastly, per capita GDP growth boosts enterprise profitability by increasing the aggregate demand for …

Methodological guide on time-use measurements in Latin America and the Caribbean

The region is facing the challenge of increasing the harmonization and comparability of measurements of time use and unpaid work. The methodological differences between the various surveys make it harder to generate regional aggregate data. In view of this, the member countries of the Working Group on Gender Statistics agreed to prepare a methodological document that would collate the experience of the countries of the region and make recommendations for the design of measurement instruments that would make it possible to generate comparable indicators with common regionally agreed-upon method…

Fiscal Panorama of Latin America and the Caribbean 2022: Fiscal policy challenges for sustainable and inclusive development

The region is facing a complex economic situation, marked by slowing growth, rising inflation, interest rate hikes and volatility in international markets. This context puts pressure on public finances, compounded by increasing demands for social welfare, investment and environmental sustainability, which pose fiscal policy challenges. The Fiscal Panorama of Latin America and the Caribbean, 2022 proposes a fiscal policy design that would help to drive sustainable development, by strengthening tax collection and making tax structures more progressive, and giving a strategic orientation to publi…

2021 Port Report: Early signs of a recovery in international container shipping in Latin America and the Caribbean

In 2020 the entire world was overwhelmed by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, which changed the daily lives of people around the globe and had a devastating impact on humankind. The pandemic and its effects in different sectors have been the object of intensive analysis. This edition of the FAL Bulletin will focus on the question as to whether or not the international container shipping industry in Latin America and the Caribbean is on the path to recovery. It will also look at the upward trend in container freight rates and its implications as one of the emerging issues associated …

Report of the Fifth meeting of the Forum of the Countries of Latin America and the Caribbean on Sustainable Development 

Guide for the implementation of a quality assurance framework for statistical processes and outputs

This document is intended as a guide to the adoption, adaptation and application in Latin America and the Caribbean of the United Nations National Quality Assurance Frameworks Manual for Official Statistics. It draws on the Manual and its diagnostic tools via an unofficial Spanish translation produced by the national statistical offices of Colombia and Mexico. It also draws on discussions of those inputs held with the countries of the region to obtain recommendations for adapting the Manual to the Latin American and Caribbean context.…

Towards the measurement of electromobility in international trade

This document, which was prepared as part of a collaborative project between the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), provides a methodology for disaggregating electric and conventional buses into their parts, in order to analyse international trade flows in electromobility components. The vectors developed are based on the 2017 version of the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System and include all parts needed to build electric or conventional (diesel) buses. The vectors capture global tra…

Annotated provisional agenda. Twenty-ninth meeting of the Presiding Officers of the Regional Council for Planning of the Latin American and Caribbean Institute for Economic and Social Planning (ILPES)

Lessons and challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic for household surveys in Latin America

As a consequence of mobility restrictions aimed at containing coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infections, several national statistical offices (NSOs) suspended the collection of household survey data and struggled to continue publishing indicators derived from this type of statistical operation. This note presents a summary of the strategies implemented to continue the production of employment, income and poverty statistics during the health emergency. Lessons learned during the period may improve preparedness for future emergencies of this nature.…

Equality at the heart of ECLAC thinking: Ideas, policies and actions from 2008 to 2022

This essay summarizes the main lines of analysis, policy proposals and actions in favour of sustainable development in Latin America and the Caribbean that ECLAC has pursued during the more than 13 years that Alicia Bárcena served as its Executive Secretary.…