External conditions and economic growth in Latin America (2004-2008)

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article aims to expose a set of empirical evidence on economic growth and external economic conditions in Latin America. It is argued that, by the early 2000s, a set of circumstances resulted in significant improvement of the external conditions, relaxing the balance of payments restrictions to economic growth. This favorable scenario was a necessary condition for the acceleration of economic growth rates in the region in the period 2004-2008. The accumulation of international reserves functioned to strengthen external liquidity conditions and helped to resist the exchange rate appreciation, thereby preventing the deterioration of external solvency conditions. Key words Artigo recebido em out. 2012