Peru's econ minister sees 2019 growth despite 'downward bias' amid political crisis

Record ID: 1436104

  • Title: Peru's econ minister sees 2019 growth despite 'downward bias' amid political crisis
  • Date: 10th October 2019
  • Summary: LIMA, PERU (OCTOBER 09, 2019) (REUTERS) PERUVIAN OFFICIALS INCLUDING THE PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL OF MINISTERS, VICENTE ZEBALLOS, TAKE SEATS AT NEWS CONFERENCE VARIOUS, OFFICIALS AND JOURNALISTS AT NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PERUVIAN ECONOMY MINISTER, MARIA ANTONIETA ALVA, SAYING: "The official figure (of this year's growth) of the Ministry of Economy is 3% with a downward bias. This is related to having an economy integrated with the world, so the deterioration in international conditions could definitely affect our growth." JOURNALIST ASKING QUESTION (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PERUVIAN ECONOMY MINISTER, MARIA ANTONIETA ALVA, SAYING: "What we've seen, for example, in private investment is that in this third trimester we've had the highest peak of growth this year - more or less 7% - and in September we also observed an acceleration, a growth in public investment." NEWS CONFERENCE CONCLUDES
  • Embargoed: 24th October 2019 03:28
  • Keywords: Peru economy minister Maria Antonieta Alva political crisis economic growth development President Martin Vizcarra
  • Location: LIMA, PERU
  • City: LIMA, PERU
  • Country: Peru
  • Topics: Government/Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA001B0IJ687
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Peru's new economy minister said on Wednesday (October 09) she saw economic growth for this year at 3% but warned of a "downward bias" due to the global slowdown and a local political crisis in which the president dissolved Congress late last month.
    Maria Antonieta Alva, a 34-year-old, Harvard-trained public administrator, told a news conference in the capital Lima that the economy remained "solid" despite the upheaval.
    Peru's centrist president, Martin Vizcarra, swore in 19 new ministers, including Alva, last week and has announced new legislative elections for Jan. 26 amid the country's worst political crisis in two decades.
    Alva, who has the power to issue emergency decrees in the absence of a functioning Congress, said she is considering extending some decrees for tax benefits in the country's vital mining and oil sectors, which were due to expire at the end of the year.
    "The official figure [of this year's growth] of the Ministry of Economy is 3% with a downward bias," Alva said during a conference with foreign media.
    This year's growth projection was announced in August, when Vizcarra's government sent his public budget draft for 2020 to Congress.
    Fitch Ratings said in a report on Tuesday (October 08) that risks to Peru's economic growth had increased as a result of the ongoing political crisis in the Andean country, after Vizcarra announced the dissolution of Congress to end a year-long stand-off with the opposition over his proposed reforms for stamping out entrenched graft.
    Alva said she would wait for confirmation of September and October figures, which she said are encouraging, before making economic projections for 2020. She said private investment growth for the third quarter was the highest rate for the year at about 7%, and that public investment was up.
    (Production: Enrique Mandujano)
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