Competition policy in Latin America and the Caribbean has grown significantly in the past two decades. This report presents some of the main competition enforcement trends in the region based on an analysis of data provided by 14 OECD and non-OECD jurisdictions about their competition enforcement activity from 2015-20. By providing multi-year data on competition enforcement indicators, this report informs policymaking and contributes to the continual improvement of competition law and policy in the region.

Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) has made slow but consistent progress addressing the imbalances induced by the pandemic in an international environment that is just now showing signs of stabilizing. Despite favorable macroeconomic management, high interest rates and fiscal imbalances remain challenging while growth rates remain lackluster due to long-standing structural issues. Looking forward, an aging workforce and rising violence will increasingly complicate policy. This report focuses particularly on weak competitive forces as a source of low productivity, low growth, and low welfare in LAC. It emphasizes the need for effective competition institutions, pro-competition regulatory frameworks, complementary policies to improve the capabilities of workers and firms, and enhanced innovation systems, to prepare local industries to reach the technological frontier and face global competition. Furthermore, the report underscores the need for reforms to prevent large businesses from exerting undue political influence over policy decisions.

Contains the results of peer reviews of the competition law and policies of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Argentina.

Competition is a core element of economic growth, but empirical evidence on how competition affects productivity in the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) region is limited. This study fills this gap with state-of-the-art empirical research, drawing on firm surveys in the formal sector and novel domestic competition enforcement datasets.

Latin American and Caribbean issuers placed US$ 64 billion in bonds on international bond markets in 2022, the smallest annual amount since 2008. In January 2023, sovereign and corporate bond issuers from the region placed almost US$ 17 billion in international bonds, a sizable improvement from the last few months of 2022, but a weaker January issuance than in previous years. The region's international bond issuance of green, social, sustainability and sustainability-linked (GSSS) bonds followed the broader market trend of declining bond activity owing to worsening macroeconomic conditions. The region issued US$ 20.5 billion of international GSSS bonds in 2022, down 56% from 2021, but still the region's second highest annual GSSS volume ever issued on international markets. Capital flows to Latin America and the Caribbean: 2022 year-in-review and 2023 early developments presents and analyses the main trends and developments concerning capital flows to Latin America and the Caribbean in 2022 and the beginning of 2023. This report is published by ECLAC three times a year and provides an overview of the region's new international bond issuances, including GSSS bonds, as well as looking at bond spreads and credit ratings.

Abstract .-- Introduction .-- I. ICTs and Competition .-- II. Competition policies in the region. A. Country selection. B. Argentina. C. Chile. D. Colombia. E. Costa Rica. F. Peru. G. Summary .-- III. Conclusions.