Latin Business: Best & Worst

BY CHRONICLE STAFF

Brazil may be the hottest destination in Latin America for foreign investors these days, but it's not the country with the best business climate. That honor goes to Chile. And Panama is just behind, followed by Peru, Uruguay and the Dominican Republic, according to the third annual Latin Business Index from Latin Business Chronicle.

The index of 19 countries is the broadest measure of business climate in Latin America. Rather than looking at the size of a country’s GDP or GDP per capita, it looks at five key categories and 27 subcategories to measure the recent, current and future business environment in a country.  They are:

• Macro Environment (GDP growth 2006 and 2007, estimated growth this year and forecasted growth next year, inflation 2006 and 2007, estimated inflation this year and forecasted inflation next year).
• Corporate Environment (corporate tax rates, access to capital for entrepreneurs,  ease of doing business (including starting and closing a business) and economic freedom).
• Globalization & Competitiveness (globalization, competitiveness, tariffs, education/ health and security for companies and businessmen).
• Technology Level (PC, Internet, broadband, wireless and fixed telephony penetration).
• Political Environment (political freedom, political stability, political outlook, business policies of government and corruption).

Brazil, Latin America's largest economy, ends up in...

Full story

Keywords: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela