Growth Challenges for Latin America : What Has Happened, Why, and How to Reform the Reforms

Latin America faces the twin challenges of achieving economic growth and reducing extreme inequality. Notwithstanding the heterogeneity among Latin American countries (LACs), most of them exhibit both: (i) low average Gross Domestic Product (GDP) g...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author:	Ffrench-Davis, Ricardo
Format:	Working Paper
Language:	English en_US
Published:	World Bank, Washington, DC 2017
Subjects:	ACCESS TO CAPITAL ACCESS TO CAPITAL MARKETS ACCESS TO FINANCING ADVERSE SELECTION AGGREGATE DEMAND ARBITRAGE BALANCE OF PAYMENTS BANK LENDING BANKING CRISES BANKRUPTCIES BOND BOND FINANCING BUSINESS CYCLE BUSINESS CYCLES CAPITAL ACCOUNT CAPITAL ACCOUNT LIBERALIZATION CAPITAL ACCOUNTS CAPITAL FLIGHT CAPITAL FLOWS CAPITAL GAINS CAPITAL GROWTH CAPITAL INFLOWS CAPITAL MARKET CAPITAL MARKETS CAPITAL MOVEMENTS CENTRAL BANK CENTRAL BANKS CLOSED ECONOMY COMMODITIES COMPARATIVE ADVANTAGES COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS COMPETITIVENESS CONSUMERS CREDIT FACILITIES CRISIS CONTAGION CURRENCY CURRENT ACCOUNT DEFICIT DEBT DEBT CRISES DEBT CRISIS DEFICITS DEMOCRACY DEREGULATION DERIVATIVES DEVELOPING COUNTRIES DEVELOPING ECONOMIES DEVELOPING ECONOMY DEVELOPMENT POLICY DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY DISTRIBUTION OF INCOME DIVERSIFIED MARKETS DOMESTIC CAPITAL DOMESTIC CAPITAL MARKETS DOMESTIC ECONOMY DOMESTIC FINANCIAL MARKET DOMESTIC FINANCIAL MARKETS DOMESTIC MARKETS ECONOMIC ACTIVITY ECONOMIC CRISIS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ECONOMIC GROWTH ECONOMIC OUTCOMES ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE ECONOMIC REFORM ECONOMIC REFORMS ECONOMIC RENTS ELASTICITY EMERGING ECONOMIES EQUIPMENT EXCHANGE RATE EXCHANGE RATE INSTABILITY EXCHANGE RATE REGIME EXCHANGE RATES EXPENDITURE EXPORT GROWTH EXPORTERS EXPORTS EXTERNAL DEFICITS EXTERNALITIES FINANCIAL ASSETS FINANCIAL CAPITAL FINANCIAL CRISES FINANCIAL CRISIS FINANCIAL FLOWS FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS FINANCIAL LIBERALIZATION FINANCIAL REFORMS FINANCIAL SAVINGS FINANCIAL SECTORS FINANCIAL SYSTEM FINANCIAL SYSTEMS FISCAL DEFICIT FISCAL DEFICITS FISCAL DISCIPLINE FISCAL POLICIES FISCAL POLICY FIXED CAPITAL FIXED EXCHANGE RATE FLOATING EXCHANGE RATE FLOW OF INFORMATION FOREIGN CURRENCY FOREIGN EXCHANGE FOREIGN EXCHANGE MARKET FREE TRADE FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS FULL EMPLOYMENT FUTURE PROSPECTS GDP GDP PER CAPITA GLOBAL ECONOMY GLOBAL MARKETS GLOBALIZATION GOVERNMENT INTERVENTIONS GROSS FIXED CAPITAL FORMATION GROWTH RATES HUMAN CAPITAL INCOME INCOME LEVELS INCOMPLETE MARKETS INDUSTRIALIZATION INFLATION INFLATION RATE INFLATION RATES INSTRUMENT INTEREST RATES INTERNATIONAL BANK INTERNATIONAL CAPITAL INTERNATIONAL CAPITAL MARKETS INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT INTERNATIONAL FINANCE INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL MARKETS INTERNATIONAL RESERVES JUDICIAL SYSTEM LABOR MARKET LABOR MARKETS LENDERS LIBERALIZATION OF TRADE LIQUIDITY LIQUIDITY CONSTRAINTS LOCAL CURRENCIES LOCAL GOVERNMENTS LONG-TERM CAPITAL MACROECONOMIC BALANCE MACROECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT MACROECONOMIC INSTABILITY MACROECONOMIC MANAGEMENT MACROECONOMIC POLICIES MACROECONOMIC POLICY MACROECONOMIC STABILITY MACROECONOMICS MARKET ECONOMY MARKET SEGMENTATION MATURITY MEDIUM OF EXCHANGE MERGERS MICROFINANCE MONETARY POLICIES MONEY LAUNDERING MORAL HAZARD NATIONAL ECONOMY NATIONAL SAVINGS NATURAL RESOURCES NET DEBT NET EXPORTS OPEN ECONOMIES OPEN ECONOMY OPTIMIZATION OUTPUT GAP OVERVALUATION PORTFOLIO PRIVATE INVESTMENT PRIVATIZATION PRIVATIZATIONS PRODUCTION FUNCTION PRODUCTIVE INVESTMENT PRODUCTIVITY GROWTH PROTECTIONISM PRUDENTIAL REGULATION PRUDENTIAL REGULATIONS PRUDENTIAL SUPERVISION PUBLIC BUDGETS PUBLIC DEFICITS PUBLIC INVESTMENT REAL ESTATE REAL EXCHANGE RATE REAL EXCHANGE RATES REAL INTEREST REAL INTEREST RATE REAL INTEREST RATES RESERVES RETURN RETURNS SAVINGS SAVINGS RATIOS SMALL BUSINESSES SOCIAL INVESTMENT SPECULATIVE BUBBLES STOCK MARKETS TAX TAX EXEMPTIONS TOTAL FACTOR PRODUCTIVITY TOTAL OUTPUT TRADE LIBERALIZATION TRADE POLICY TRADE REFORMS TRADE REGIMES TRANSPARENCY TREASURY UNEMPLOYMENT VOLATILITY WAGES WORLD DEVELOPMENT INDICATORS WORLD TRADE
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/154691468270281708/Growth-challenges-for-Latin-America-what-has-happened-why-and-how-to-reform-the-reforms http://hdl.handle.net/10986/27757

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Summary:	Latin America faces the twin challenges of achieving economic growth and reducing extreme inequality. Notwithstanding the heterogeneity among Latin American countries (LACs), most of them exhibit both: (i) low average Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth; and (ii) increased inequality during the 1980s. This long period includes the 'lost decade,' when outcomes in both variables were evidently negative. These negative trends have persisted since the early 1990s, in the period of intense reforms under the Washington consensus. The development gap (difference in GDP per capita or per worker between rich countries and LACs) and the equity gap have broadened in this period. The report evaluate: (a) the macroeconomic environment in which agents make their decisions (usually in LACs, under an economic activity operating significantly below potential GDP, with outlier macro-prices, and fluctuating aggregate demand); (b) features of financial reforms (usually intensive in short-term segments and weak financing of risk and long-term financing), and their implications for capital formation and the distribution of opportunities in the domestic economy; (c) features of trade reforms (intensive in resource-based exports but low total output of tradable); and (d) the distribution of productivities, which is closely linked to the narrow space granted for the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

Growth Challenges for Latin America : What Has Happened, Why, and How to Reform the Reforms

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