Economic Survey of Latin America and the Caribbean 2012

The sixty-fourth edition of the Economic Survey reviews the economic performance of Latin America and the Caribbean during the first half of 2012, and assesses the economic policies implemented by the countries of the region in the face of adverse external scenarios, such as spiralling food and fuel prices in 2008, the global financial crisis, and international uncertainty and the global economic cooldown starting in the second half of 2011. It also tracks investment in the region over time, identifying its components and examining the pattern of savings for funding investment.Finally, it examines the challenges faced and the progress made on four important fronts: the countercyclical response on the part of the regional development banks; new instruments for facilitating intraregional trade; changes to the Latin American Reserve Fund; and the creation or strengthening of mechanisms for fiscal and monetary authorities to cooperate in exchanging information and drafting common standards.