A lot has been going on in the world over the past few months, including some vacation time with my family back up North in the cold. The change for me is delightful, but my ladies were excited to get back to the 88 degree weather and the beach here in Nicaragua. The longer we are here, the thinner the blood bonds. Alas, I may be here for a long time and that´s Ok for me too.
 
One topic that seems to be on the mind of many people I meet and talk to, is the impact of the world economic crisis on Latin America. A recent article in the Latin Business Chronicle provides a well balanced view of the situation and the new realities in the region vis-a-vis the United States, Canada and Europe. In the wake of the world´s financial meltdown this fall, the ambassador of India to Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay concludes in a recent article that "Latin America has withstood the Western financial crisis with relatively modest impact".
 
In the Nov. 17, 2008 issue of Latin Business Chronicle, Ambassador R. Viswanathan writes: "One would have expected the Latin American economies to come crashing down as a fall-out of the historical crisis in the United States and Europe. In the past, Latin America used to sneeze when the United States caught a cold. Not any longer. Not a single bank or financial institution went bust in the region while the United States and Europe faced collapse of companies and banks with turnover of more than that of the GDP of many of the Latin American countries".
 
The Ambassador cites the report of the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and Caribbean, which states: "The economic slowdown and financial crisis in the United States will have a relatively modest impact on the Latin America and the Caribbean region in 2008, except for its exports. Compared to previous shocks in the United States economy and the world at large, Latin America and the Caribbean(LAC) is much less vulnerable than in the past, with a current account surplus, sounder public finances, a lower level and better profiles of public and external debt, and larger international financial reserves".
 
He also quotes the October report of the International Monetary Fund: "The region is expected to deal with the current global shocks better than in previous crises. This reflects the progress many countries in the region have made in improving their macroeconomic fundamentals over the past decade. The substantial buildup of international reserves, stronger fiscal positions, more credible monetary policy frameworks and improved structure of public debt has made Latin America more robust to external shocks".