CEPAL Review No. 140

Revista CEPAL Nº 140

Where next for Latin America? The two faces of the new Latin American capitalism

In Latin America, “islands of modernity” associated with a new biological and digital paradigm in the exploitation of natural resources and the production of services and manufactures coexist with vast segments of the population mired in insecurity, poverty, stagnation and social exclusion. This structural dualism reflects a growing gap between a modern segment of society that emulates the behaviour patterns of developed nations and a segment that lags behind, in which labour informality, basic material deprivations and rising citizen insecurity predominate. The lack of an appropriate theory o…

Informality, social protection and welfare during the COVID-19 crisis in four Latin American countries

We compare the effects of labour market shocks and social policy responses on people’s welfare following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay. We assess the role of formal and informal sector labour incomes and social transfers in the changes observed in the distribution of income and welfare. We worked with harmonized household survey microdata and performed a microdecomposition analysis by income source. In all four countries, the loss of earnings was the main mechanism behind the loss of income, and developments in the informal sector were crucial in…

Legal frameworks and specialized institutional frameworks for the social and solidarity economy in Latin America

This article analyses recent changes in social and solidarity economy (SSE) policies in eight Latin American countries: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico and Uruguay. It outlines the institutional rules that limited or added to States’ policymaking capacity, as well as examining progress on legislation and regulations and changes in specialized institutional frameworks. The information was obtained through an extensive review of documents and databases produced by government and academic institutions and social and solidarity economy organizations. The conclusion …

The short-run consequences of the erosion of economic freedom for growth and institutions in Latin America: an unorthodox experimental review of the twenty-first century

How economic growth can be improved is a question that has always divided researchers, but it is one of the utmost importance, bearing directly on prosperity, quality of life and human well-being. The research presented here is an experimental review whose purpose is to evaluate the causal effects that the erosion of economic freedom has had on the economic growth rate, corruption, democracy, the transparency of laws, media censorship and judicial constraints in 19 Latin American countries during the twenty-first century. The results show that for each percentage point erosion of economic free…

State aid and competition in the Dominican economy

This paper analyses the economic and social impact of a State aid programme designed to incentivize the development of the border provinces of the Dominican Republic. The intervention method chosen was based on tax exemptions, creating a possible tension between the objective of territorial cohesion and that of upholding market competition. In the competition sphere, the study analyses whether the law had the effect of increasing the market power of beneficiary companies. In the social sphere, it establishes a criterion of regional similarity and compares the evolution of the border provinces …

Full dollarization versus monetary union: the case of Ecuador

This study proposes using optimum currency areas (OCA) as a theoretical basis for analysis of the full dollarization of Ecuador, viewing the country and the United States as an informal monetary union. At least two facets of this are of interest: (i) the convergence properties of inflation rates between Ecuador and the United States; and (ii) the degree of vulnerability of the Ecuadorian economy to changes in United States monetary policy. Unit roots and stationarity tests are used to study inflation rate convergence, structural vector autoregressive models are used to examine the Ecuadorian e…

The young Raúl Prebisch and his 1919 translation of Adolph Wagner: clues to a relativist critique

This article analyses Raúl Prebisch’s earliest activities while still a young student at the University of Buenos Aires, between 1918 and 1922. One of these activities was the translation of texts by foreign economists for the university’s Revista de Ciencias Económicas, contributing to the dissemination of ideas in Argentina. We analyse Prebisch’s 1919 translation of Adolph Wagner and find indications that he modified the text, firstly by selecting for translation excerpts critical of the idea that free trade was automatically beneficial to all nations, secondly by omitting Wagner’s defence o…

Gross fixed capital formation in the Brazilian health sector: methodology and results for 2010–2019

Health satellite accounts provide information to elucidate the interaction between the health sector and the rest of the economy. However, in Brazil these accounts have gaps, such as a lack of data on gross fixed capital formation. The aim of this article is to present a methodology to measure gross fixed capital formation in the health sector in 2010–2019 and to analyse the data thus obtained. The results show that gross fixed capital formation in the health sector is biased towards machinery and equipment rather than construction. The share of private investment increased throughout the peri…

Capital flows to Latin America and the Caribbean: first half of 2023

Latin American and Caribbean bond activity in international markets recovered strongly towards the end of the first half of 2023, with a total of US$ 50 billion placed in the period. This figure was 9% higher than in the year-earlier period and 158% higher than in the second half of 2022. Decelerating inflation and currency appreciation supported the upturn in bond activity, as did the pause in increases in the benchmark interest rate decided by the United States Federal Reserve at its meeting on 13 and 14 June following 10 consecutive hikes. There was a flurry of new bond issuances in the las…

Capital Flows to Latin America and the Caribbean in five charts: First half of 2023

Latin American and Caribbean international bond activity ended the first half of 2023 on a strong note.…

Flujos de capital hacia América Latina y el Caribe en cinco gráficos: Primer semestre de 2023

La actividad de bonos internacionales de América Latina y el Caribe terminó el primer semestre de 2023 de forma favorable.…

Fluxos de capital para a América Latina e o Caribe em cinco gráficos: Primeiro semestre de 2023

A emissão de títulos internacionais da América Latina e do Caribe terminou o primeiro semestre de 2023 de forma favorável.…

Renowned Economist José Antonio Ocampo, a Columbia University Professor, Will Analyze the International Financial System Reform at ECLAC

The renowned Colombian economist José Antonio Ocampo, Professor at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and former Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), will deliver a keynote lecture on Friday, August 18 at the United Nations regional organization’s central headquarters in Santiago, Chile. The former Minister of Finance and Public Credit of Colombia will give a lecture entitled “Reform of the international financial system” at 11:00 a.m. local time in Chile (UTC/GMT -4:00). He will be received by the o…

Destacado economista José Antonio Ocampo, Profesor de la Universidad de Columbia, analizará en la CEPAL las reformas al sistema financiero internacional

El destacado economista colombiano José Antonio Ocampo, Profesor de la Escuela de Asuntos Internacionales y Públicos de la Universidad de Columbia y ex Secretario Ejecutivo de la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL), dictará el viernes 18 de agosto una conferencia magistral en la sede central del organismo regional de las Naciones Unidas en Santiago, Chile. El ex Ministro de Hacienda y Crédito Público de Colombia ofrecerá a las 11:00 horas locales (UTC/GMT -4:00) una conferencia titulada “Reformas al sistema financiero internacional”. Será recibido por el actual Secretari…

Lecture series as part of the seventy-fifth anniversary of ECLAC

As part of its special commemorative activities, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) has organized in 2023 and 2024 a 75th Anniversary Lecture Series, in which important scholars and innovators in their respective fields will share their visions and ideas on the challenges facing the world and the region, and how to foster a more productive, inclusive and sustainable development for Latin America and the Caribbean.. The commemoration of ECLAC’s 75th anniversary includes the launch of a special website that explores the organization’s origins, the evolu…

Ciclo de conferencias del 75° aniversario de la CEPAL

Como parte de sus actividades especiales y conmemorativas, la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL) ha organizado para 2023 y 2024 un Ciclo de Conferencias del 75 Aniversario al cual se ha invitado a importantes líderes pensadores e innovadores en sus respectivos campos, a aportar sus visiones e ideas sobre los retos del mundo y de la región, y sobre cómo construir un desarrollo más productivo, inclusivo y sostenible en América Latina y el Caribe. La conmemoración del 75º aniversario de la CEPAL incluye la puesta en línea de un sitio web especial q…

Ciclo de conferências do 75° aniversário da CEPAL

Como parte de suas atividades especiais e comemorativas, a Comissão Econômica para a América Latina e o Caribe (CEPAL) organizou um Ciclo de Conferências do 75º Aniversário para o qual importantes líderes pensadores e inovadores em seus respectivos campos foram convidados a apresentar suas visões e ideias sobre os desafios do mundo e da região e sobre a construção de um desenvolvimento mais produtivo, inclusivo e sustentável na América Latina e no Caribe. A comemoração do 75º aniversario da CEPAL inclui um site especial que repassa as origens do organismo, a evolução de seu pensamento e as atu…

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