“Strong demand in Asia for commodities like iron ore, tin and gold, combined with policies in several Latin American economies that help control deficits and keep inflation low, are encouraging investment and fuelling much of the growth,” the NY Times said.
Brazil is leading the regional recovery from the downturn of 2009, growing 9 percent in the first quarter from the same period last year.
Brazil’s central bank was reported as forecasting growth of as much as 7.3 percent in 2010, the fastest rate of expansion in 24 years.
Mexico’s economy delivered 4.3 percent growth in the first quarter of 2010, and is forecast to achieve 5 percent growth for the year.
“Smaller Latin American countries are also growing fast,” the NY Times said.
“Peru’s gross domestic product surged by 9.3 percent in April from the same month of last year, while Chile’s economy grew 8.2 percent in April from the previous month, its biggest increase since 1996.”
Source: The New York Times
