This semiannual report, a product of theOffice of the Chief Economist for the Latin America and theCaribbean (LAC) region of the World Bank, examines the natureof the very good overall performance of the LAC region inthe aftermath of the 2008-09 global financial crisis andpresents a comparative analysis of the post-crisis recoverypatterns in the region vis-a-vis other regions. The firstpart of this report provides an overview of recent economicdevelopments, an in depth look at the drivers of thepost-crisis performance in the region, analyzes the externaland domestic risks that could drag down growth performancein LAC, and discusses policy response options. The secondpart of the report documents the adverse impact of thecrisis on the Caribbean region as well as its slow recovery.It distinguishes the poorer performance of English speakingCaribbean nations vis-a-vis non-English speaking ones, andhighlights the dependence of the region on countries in theepicenter of the crisis, especially the United States, andthe limited fiscal space that disabled a counter-cyclicalpolicy response. The report concludes by emphasizing thatskillful cycle management is necessary although far fromsufficient to be able to turn what has to date been acyclical recovery into a higher rate of trend growth.Moreover, countries experiencing a formidable windfall fromthe high commodity prices are in a unique position to seizethe opportunity by judiciously saving and investing out ofthe windfall, they could relax the structural speed limitsthat have so far kept economic activity from rising to ahigher long-run growth path.
PDF
download
878987797
028-85220240
