RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AP) — The International Monetary Fund is forecasting a nearly double-digit recession for Latin America and the Caribbean in 2020 — a contraction of 9.4 per cent — as the region is dragged down by its two largest economies which continue to suffer from the novel coronavirus.
The updated outlook for the region, released yesterday, is down sharply from the 5.2 per cent recession forecast in April, which already would have been the worst performance since at least 1980, the first year in the IMF's World Economic Outlook database.
The country's industrial activity plunged nearly 30 per cent in April compared to a year earlier amid its lockdown.
The IMF predicts a 9.1 per cent plunge for Brazil, which is Latin America's biggest economy and most populous nation.
Brazil's central bank said in the minutes to its most recent monetary policy meeting, released Tuesday, that data indicate economic activity reached its low point in April.
