b'2American Journal of Transportation ajot.comLatin Americas Covid-inducedlatin america trade bi-annualrecession exacerbated by debtBy George Lauriat, AJOTThegloom.Itspalat- theregionsaveragedebt able,anditsunderstand- levels are 58% of GDP and able.ManyLatinAmericantheregionsgovernments economieswerebesetwithcould suffer a severe drop in economicproblemssometax revenues in 2021 with the oftheirownmaking,manyloss of economic activity due theresultofaconfluenceto the pandemic. ofglobaleconomiccondi- (RECESSIONcontinued tionsand now the Covid-19on page 3)pandemic has replaced what might have been a period of qualifiedeconomicgrowth with the question of whether the2020swillturninto anotherlostdecadeforthe region. And the issue of sov-ereigndebtlookstopoten-tially slow recovery. A D ebtorsP risonPerhaps the most imme-diateproblemfacingLatinLuis Alberto Moreno, president America is debt. Even beforeof the IDB The Panama Canals Titan crane in operation.Covidravagedtheregion, sovereign debt was a prison for many of the Latin Ameri-cannations,shacklingtheir economic growth. For example, in the case ofArgentina,debthasat timesunderminedthecur-rency[ArgentinePesohas largelybeenfallingagainst theU.S.dollarsince2010] causinginflationandthrot-tling international trade, in a nationwithastrongexport base.Andwithdebtcomes theissueofborrowingand like any individual with bad credit,anationalsohas troubleborrowingthenec-essarycapital.ForArgen-tina, this meant negotiating a restructuring of $65 billion in sovereign debt with creditors. In early August, after months ofnegotiations,Argentina managed to get a deal done toavoidthenationsninth default.Fromacommerce standpoint,theagreementPROPEL YOUR CARGO IN will mean lower interest rates and better access to finance, and overall will provide morePOWERFUL NEW WAYSmacroeconomic stability.Ofcourse,itisntjust Argentina, nearly every Latin AmericaneconomyhasPort Everglades provides the fastest path for your cargo. Less waves. More speed. endured some form of debt andVisit porteverglades.net or call 800-421-0188.the pandemic has done nothing to exacerbate the issuesome economistsareforecastingasLess than one mile from the Rail connections throughout the U.S.much as a 9.4% decline in GDPAtlantic Shipping LanesOn-port Foreign-Trade Zoneacross the region.Luis Alberto Moreno, who Direct highway access Ocean shipping to 150 ports infornearlythelast15yearsOne traffic signal to Los Angeles 70 countrieswas the President of the IDB (Inter-AmericanDevelopment Bank), one of the main sources ofsovereignfinancingfor LatinAmerica,cautionedat anearlySeptemberAtlan-ticCouncilmeetingshortly before his retirement, that debt across the region couId be asport.everglades |@porteverglades | PortEvergladesFLhigh as 75% within the next eighteenmonths.Moreno notedinhiscommentsthat PEG755_AJOT_propeller_HP_mech.indd 1 1/23/17 1:34 PM'