Colombia: Economic activity accelerates in July
Latest reading: Economic activity rose 4.3% in annual terms in July, following a 3.0% rise in the previous month.
Relative to the previous month’s data, readings in July improved for industrial (+4.3% vs +2.5% in June) and services (+5.5% vs +3.4% in June). In contrast, the reading for agriculture softened in July (-1.6% vs +2.5% in June).
In seasonally adjusted month-on-month terms, economic activity was up 2.9% in July, following 1.0% growth in the prior month.
Panelist insight: Commenting on the outlook, Emerging Market Watch analysts stated:
“Questions arise about the sustainability of July’s expansion, especially given the 1.6% decline in the primary sector, a traditional source of foreign exchange. […] The current administration’s policy stance toward the oil & gas industry appears to be materializing in the primary sector results, and this drag on economic growth will likely persist. The critical question for sustainability is now whether the strong rebound in secondary […] can offset the primary sector’s weakness and reduce over-reliance on consumer-facing and government-driven services moving forward.”