The Commission Economic for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) published its latest report on the region’s foreign trade this Wednesday, in which it reveals that the value of the region’s exports of goods will grow by 4% in 2024.
According to the document International Trade Outlook for Latin America and the Caribbeanthat 4% is the result of a 5% volume expansion and a 1% price drop.
Regarding imports, the organization estimates a 4% increase in volume and a 2% drop in prices.
Data by sector, region and partners
By sector, the greatest increase will occur in agricultural exports (11%), followed by mining and oil (5%) and manufacturing (3%).
The largest increases will occur in the Caribbean (23%) due to the notable increase in the volume of oil shipments from Guyana and Suriname.
In South America, the document highlights the increase in exports of agricultural products such as soybeans, corn and wheat.
By partners, the organization foresees that the increase in exports to China will be 6%, to the United States at 4% and to the European Union at 3%. On the contrary, intraregional exports will fall by 5%.
Rise of tourism and digital services
On the other hand, ECLAC projects that the value of regional exports of services will increase by 12% in 2024, driven mainly by tourism and digital services.
The organization highlights that, to take advantage of the high growth in global demand for modern services, countries should strengthen productive policies in collaboration with the private sector.
It also recommends strengthening the population’s digital and language skills, closing digital infrastructure gaps and attracting foreign direct investment.
The latter is key to bringing new technologies, improving productivity and generating clusters and value chains around services, the document states.
Trade and food security
Around 41 million people suffered from hunger in 2023 in the region, 4.7 million more people than in 2019. Furthermore, the prevalence of hunger in the Caribbean (17.2%) triples that recorded in South America (5, 2%) and in Central America and Mexico (5.8%).
In this context, the document highlights that international trade plays a crucial role in food security, arguing that Imports allow access to foods whose local production is impossible or too expensive due to climatic conditions or insufficient availability of land or technology.
Likewise, they can supply local production in the event of temporary shocks such as plagues, conflicts or extreme weather phenomena. In turn, the income generated by exports can be used to purchase food.
According to data, Latin America and the Caribbean is the main net food exporting region worldwide. Its food shipments reached $349 billion in 2022, its all-time high. South America explains the bulk of regional exports.
The value of food imports exceeds 20% of total exports of goods and services in 15 countries in the region, of which 12 belong to the Caribbean, the report indicates.
Strengthen regional integration
In this context, ECLAC maintains that strengthening regional integration is essential for a more stable and lower-cost food supply.
On the one hand, this would expand the supply of food from nearby sourcesreducing disturbances from third markets.
On the other hand, greater regional integration would favor economic and social development through job creationcontributing in turn to greater food security.
To strengthen the contribution of trade to food security in the region, the report recommends, among other measures, harmonizing health regulations and strengthening trade agreements between countries.
Add Comment