Colombia : un vistazo a la economía; Cuarto trimestre de 2003

Abstract

Colombia continued consolidating its economic reactivation process. By the end of 2003, the economy grew 3.64%, which represents a significant improvement, compared with the growth of 1.7% recorded for the year 2002. Due to the good overall performance of the economy, the government adjusted in several times the economic growth forecast. In December of 2002, the growth forecast for 2003 was 2.0%, and in September, the forecast was raised to between 2.5 and 3.0%.

This document presents an overview of the Colombian economy for the fourth quarter of 2003. The first section describes the factors that contributed to the economic growth consolidation recorded by the end of 2003, highlighting the recovery private demand of particularly investment. The second section highlights the reduction in inflation levels and the prospects for meeting the 2004 inflationary target. The third section analyzes the recent exchange rate behavior and concludes that despite the revaluation trend, the competitiveness level of Colombian exports continue to be high. Additionally, the paper concludes that this is a phenomenon that affects many countries in the Latin America region and the world. The next section highlights the achievement of the fiscal goals agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the government’s objective of achieving a better fiscal discipline. Finally, this document describes the main facts of the evolution of the external sector.