Colombia’s Central bank on Tuesday lowered the expectation of the country’s economic growth for 2010 from 2-4% to 2-3%.
According to the bank’s director Jose Dario Uribe, “we believe the most likely situation is a growth between 2% and 3%.”
The expected growth should be established through “the carrying out of public works, the export and production of minerals and the recuperation of private consumption,” Uribe said on the bank’s website.
The Central bank president stated that consumer confidence is growing in Colombia and that ghouseholds this year face better financial situations than last year when Colombia was in recession following the global financial crisis.
However, the bank president warned that unemployment is continuing to be of negative influence on the economy and its growth. Also, the recent heatwave and its impact on food prices have had a negative impact on the spending possibility of Colombian homes.
The trade ban imposed by Venezuela and the slow recuperation of Colombia’s coffee production “will continue to affect the economic activity in 2010.”
According to Uribe, the growth can exceed the current expectations if the economy of the United States, Colombia’s largest export market, improves faster than anticipated.