Latin America's Debt

• Pages: 56

Eduardo Valdivia-Velarde/Lily Seo

IMF's Statistics Department

Page 56

Lower external debt ratios help Latin America face the global crisis better

External debt has risen in many countries over the past fi ve years, particularly in Europe. But in Latin America, external debt as a share of GDP has fallen signifi cantly, according to IMF-World Bank data. External debt-the amount owed to nonresidents by residents of an economy-for 10 Latin American economies has declined, on average, from 59 percent of GDP in 2003 to 32 percent in 2008.

But this does not imply that Latin America is immune to the current crisis. Like other regions, Latin America faces many challenges, but in an environment of global financial strains, having reduced external debt ratios is one factor enhancing the region's resilience to the current crisis.

Composition of external debt. In Europe and Asia, a large portion of external debt is owed by banks. In 2008, banks owed 54 percent of foreign borrowing in Europe and 45 percent in Asia. In contrast, in Latin America, banks' debt represents a relatively small share (16 percent), and the shares of external debt owed by governments and the nonbank private and public sectors are larger than in Europe and Asia.

About the external debt database

Most data are...