The value of exports of Latin America and the Caribbean grew 20% in 2022, driven by an increase of 14% of prices and an expansion of 6% of the exported volume, while that of imports of goods increased in 24%.
These are the main data performance data in the region, according to the new annual report of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), which reveals a series of details about that commercial behavior.
For example, one of the most significant data is that for the first time since 2015, trade with China, which represented only 8% of the value of exports in the region, while sales to the European Union grew by 26% , becoming one of its main partners.
Deceleration
Notwithstanding the increase in exports, they slowed over 2021 when they grew by 27%. In both years, the expansion was promoted more by exogenous factors, such as the price increase of raw materials, than by the capacity to expand the volume of the exported or the possibility of diversifying the offer towards new sectors.
According to the report Perspectives of International Trade in Latin America and the Caribbean 2022the largest estimated exports increases were recorded in hydrocarbon exporting countries: Trinidad and Tobago (69%), Venezuela (63%), Colombia (49%) and Guyana (45%), exposing the Achilles heel of Achilles of Latin America, the manufacturing sector.
Regional participation in world manufacturing exports has not exceeded 5% in the last 20 years. In addition, Latin America presents a persistent and growing commercial deficit in manufactures, which went from representing 3% of GDP in 1995 to 6% in 2021
In addition, Latin America and the Caribbean only present significant surpluses in the automotive and food, drinks and tobacco sectors, and its manufacturing exports show a high concentration by origin: a single country (Mexico) represented 57% of the total between 2019 and 2021 .
The Covid-19 Pandemia and the conflict in Ukraine have evidence manufacturing, ”says the commission in the study.
Latin America has a high regional dependence on external supply of strategic products such as medicines, medical devices and fertilizers.
Expand regional trade
And emphasizes that “given its great importance for manufacturing exports, it is need to move towards a broad and stable regional market through regulatory convergence initiatives, trade facilitation, strategic use of public purchases and improvement of connectivity ”.
Likewise, productive promotion policies are required to raise export competitiveness in all segments of manufacturing value chains, including service activities associated with them (research and development, design, logistics, etc.), emphasizes the agency United Nations Regional.
For the region as a whole, it is projected A deficit commercial balance of 58,000 million dollars in 2022that is, 45,000 million dollars more than in 2021.
Unlike the deceleration in the trade of goods, that of services showed an important recovery, with a growth of 45% during the first semester of 2022 compared to the same period of 2021. This is mainly due to the reactivation of tourism, followed by The item of other services.
In a context marked by the conflict in Ukraine, high inflation, less growth, geopolitical tensions and persistence of pandemic, the report indicates that world trade suffered a strong deceleration in 2022 that will be exacerbated in 2023 with a growth of just 1%.
The fundamental maritime supply for Latin America
The report also examines the deep disruptions in supply maritime chains, which mobilize 80% of the volume of world trade of goods, from the beginning of the pandemic and its effect on the region.
The massive closures of productive activities, the greatest congestion in the ports and the limited availability of containers, added to the high concentration of the shipping industry, have resulted in a shortage of imported final goods for consumption and supplies and capital goods imported for production; the loss of reliability of shipments; Y An increase in inflation due to the highest transport costs.
One of the main effects of these disruptions has been the notorious increase in the price of maritime freight. For example, the cost of transporting the region’s exports to the United States in June 2022 was four times greater than January 2019. For its part, the cost of transport of imports from Asia today is 4, 3 times greater than the January 2019 value.
ECLAC argues that global maritime supply chains are key to moving towards sustainable development of the region.
Latin America and the Caribbean face a double challenge: on the one hand, it is necessary of international trade in terms of routes, actors and interests for the years to come.
“The coordinated channeling of public and private resources, through public-private partnerships can contribute to advance new projects and improve the existing infrastructure demanded by the region. It is necessary to give way to associations that put the interests of people first and that they are in line with the sustainable development objectives, ”says the report.
