Latin American Keys is an informative and analytical summary regarding the political and economic situation in the Latin American region. These key takeaways, prepared monthly by ATREVIA´s Analysis and Research team, serve to be a useful tool in understanding the evolution of the political-institutional state of Latin America.
Inflation continues to decline across the region, although there have been slight upticks in some countries like Mexico and Brazil, the two largest economies in Latin America. In Mexico, the approval of judicial reform, which establishes the popular election of judges, has sparked economic uncertainty and political controversy. In Brazil, municipal elections reflected a significant advance for the right-wing opposition. In contrast, Chile, Peru, and Colombia saw a decrease in inflation, prompting their central banks to cut interest rates. In Chile, similar to Brazil, local elections slightly favored the right-wing over the government.
Meanwhile, Peru hosted APEC 2024, bringing together the leading economies of Asia and the Pacific. Leaders such as Joe Biden and Xi Jinping participated, and the occasion was used to inaugurate the Chancay mega-port, which is expected to have a major regional impact. In Colombia, the country hosted COP16 on biodiversity.
Returning to inflation, it is still dropping in Argentina, although purchasing power remains unrecovered. However, despite the government’s continued policy of cuts, President Javier Milei’s approval has stabilized its decline. This is not the case in Ecuador, where the ongoing energy crisis, with daily power outages of up to 12 hours, has led to widespread disapproval of the government’s handling.
In Uruguay’s general elections, Frente Amplio secured the majority in the Senate and came very close to doing so in the Chamber as well, though a second round of voting will be needed to determine the next president.
Hearings for the nominees to the next European Commission have revealed their positions on key issues affecting EU-Latin America relations. Additionally, the European Parliament approved a one year delay in implementing anti-deforestation regulations.