Thursday, February 03, 2011

Will 2011 be the dawn of the Latin American decade ?

¨Will 2011 be the dawn of the Latin American decade ?¨ is the title of the webcast by Standard and Poors on 11 January 2011.

Joydeep Mukherji, Senior Director and Lisa Schineller, Director of Sovereign Ratings and Latin American Economist of Standard & Poor's Ratings Services have been interviewed in this 50 minute show

I liked it. My answer to the title of the show is,
Yes.. this is going to be the growth decade for the region, which had experienced a lost decade in the eighties.
I agree with the observations and conclusions of Joydeep, who despite his pasioncito ( little passion) for the region, is objective and balanced. I tend to see the half full..given my unbound passion.

Joydeep has said, ¨the elections in latin america have become boring ¨. This is great news. Boring means no turn to the opposite direction or drastic changes in policies when governments change. There is a growing consensus on major policies even when governments are formed by parties of different ideologies.

Following up on Joydeep´s statement I would say that even the economies of the region are becoming boring. No more hyperinflation, debt overburden or exchange rate volatility. No booms and busts. No more adventurous or experimental economic policies or IMF rescue operations. Macroeconomic indicators have become more stable and predictable. The policy makers are more disciplined and pragmatic ( exceptions are there !!). I like this boring situation and expect to see the economies becoming even more boring.

Here is the link to the webcast

http://mcgraw-hill.mediasite.com/mcgrawhill/Viewer/?peid=67e94c7ad8b141f79a7851084473cb0f

No comments: