Integration and Trade Section, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)
Eric Farnsworth, Vice President, Council of the Americas
Steve Liston, Senior Director, Council of the Americas (moderator)
“2021’s gonna look very good from a trade perspective because 2020 was pretty bad,” said Ken Roberts, who participated in a panel co-hosted by Council of the Americas and WorldCity analyzing Latin American trade in 2020 and projections for 2021.
Mainly due to the impact of the coronavirus, 2020 saw a decline in trade in Latin America, especially in the first half of the year. Critically, the commodity sector was particularly affected by a global drop in consumption. However, the panel gave reason for optimism: recovery of trade opportunities has been faster than expected. Roberts cited the potential U.S. stimulus, rising consumption, and a strong stock market, as reasons to be optimistic about 2021.