Peru: Economic activity growth gains steam in January
Economic activity grew 2.9% year-on-year in January, accelerating from December’s 1.7% increase and marking the eleventh consecutive month of growth in activity. Looking at the breakdown by sector, activity in manufacturing and mining gained pace, while the construction sector shrank at a markedly softer pace in January. Contrastingly, retail sector growth lost some momentum.
On a monthly basis, economic activity rose 0.2% in January, matching December’s reading which had marked the lowest result since February 2021. Meanwhile, the trend improved modestly, with the annual average growth of economic activity coming in at 13.6%, up from December’s 13.3%.
Looking ahead, February should have seen a continuation in year-on-year activity growth, in part due to strengthening terms of trade as commodity prices were shocked by the Russian invasion of Ukraine at the end of the month. However, continuing political uncertainty, spiraling inflation and tightening monetary policy all likely weighed on activity during the month.