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The myth of the 'Latin American decade'

Author

Listed:
  • José Antonio Ocampo
  • Eduardo F. Bastian
  • Marcos Reis

Abstract

This paper analyzes Latin American performance over the period 2003-2014 with the purpose of evaluating two ideas: whether this period constituted so-called ‘golden years’ and whether the 2010s were likely to be a ‘Latin American decade’ This term was used several times by scholars, international organizations, and market experts, claiming that the region was finally on the right track after two decades of disappointing economic performance. However, the data shows that the claims were overoptimistic. We compare the region’s 2003-2014 performance with that in the 1980s and 1990s, evaluate how the region performed in the sub-periods 2003-2007 and 2008-2014, and compare the region’s 2003-2014 indicators with those of other selected developing regions during the same period. We show that the period in question was a ‘golden decade’ only when compared with the region’s own performance during the previous two decades, but not when compared with other developing regions. Moreover, we notice that the lack of structural change during this decade implies weak development performance for the region in the near future.

Suggested Citation

  • José Antonio Ocampo & Eduardo F. Bastian & Marcos Reis, 2018. "The myth of the 'Latin American decade'," PSL Quarterly Review, Economia civile, vol. 71(285), pages 231-251.
  • Handle: RePEc:psl:pslqrr:2018:26
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    File URL: https://ojs.uniroma1.it/index.php/PSLQuarterlyReview/article/view/14354/14062
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Inter-American Development Bank & Matteo Grazzi & Carlo Pietrobelli (ed.), 2016. "Firm Innovation and Productivity in Latin America and the Caribbean," Palgrave Macmillan Books, Palgrave Macmillan, number 978-1-349-58151-1, October.
    2. Erten, Bilge & Ocampo, José Antonio, 2013. "Super Cycles of Commodity Prices Since the Mid-Nineteenth Century," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 14-30.
    3. José Antonio Ocampo, 2005. "Beyond Reforms : Structural Dynamics and Macroeconomic Vulnerability," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 7378.
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    Cited by:

    1. Fabio Andrés Díaz Pabón & María Gabriela Palacio Ludeña, 2021. "Inequality and the Socioeconomic Dimensions of Mobility in Protests: The Cases of Quito and Santiago," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 12(S2), pages 78-90, April.
    2. Rapetti, Martin & Libman, Emiliano & Carrera, Gonzalo, 2024. "Latin America in the New Millennium: A Region of Macroeconomic Forking Paths," MPRA Paper 122289, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Marcela Guachamín & Diana Ramírez‐Cifuentes & Olga Delgado, 2020. "An Uncertainty Thermometer to Measure the Macroeconomic‐Financial Risk in South American Countries," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(6), pages 854-890, August.
    4. Dengjun Zhang, 2022. "Capacity utilization under credit constraints: A firm‐level study of Latin American manufacturing," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(1), pages 1367-1386, January.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Latin America; economic performance; developing regions;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N16 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - Latin America; Caribbean
    • O54 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Latin America; Caribbean
    • L16 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Industrial Organization and Macroeconomics; Macroeconomic Industrial Structure

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