ECLAC Economic Commission for Latin America and : Will Update its Economic Growth Estimates for the Region’s Countries in 2020 and Provide New Projections for 2021

The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) will present next Wednesday, December 16 its flagship annual report entitled Preliminary Overview of the Economies of Latin America and the Caribbean 2020, which examines the performance of the region's economies this year and updates growth figures and other indicators that reflect the impact countries have borne as a result of the COVID-19 crisis.

More specifically, the document will contain new Gross Domestic Product (GDP) estimates for the region and all of its countries in 2020, and it will provide a first growth estimate for 2021. This edition of the report also analyzes the economic effects prompted by the pandemic in each country in light of the events of recent months, and it offers policy recommendations for addressing them, above all in reference to fiscal and monetary matters, while also stressing the importance of international cooperation.

The report will be presented during a virtual press conference held by Alicia Bárcena, ECLAC's Executive Secretary, speaking from Santiago, Chile at 11:00 a.m. local time (UTC/GMT -3:00).

According to the document, in a context of global contraction, Latin America and the Caribbean is the developing region that is being hardest hit by the economic crisis stemming from COVID-19. In 2021, a positive growth rate is foreseen in the region, but it will not be enough to regain pre-pandemic levels. The specific magnitude of the region's main economic indicators will be unveiled by Alicia Bárcena during the press conference next Wednesday.

The press conference will be transmitted live via Zoom at the following link:

https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_DdL1c9H5QZ2W5a73g7TFlw

Journalists interested in participating must register in advance. They will receive an automated email with instructions for joining the event.

The press conference will also be transmitted online via the institution's website and its social media accounts on Twitter (@cepal_onu) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/cepal.onu). Journalists will be able to submit their questions ahead of time to the email address [e-mail], and ECLAC's Executive Secretary will respond to them once she has finished presenting the document. Questions will only be taken until 11:30 a.m. local time.

Members of the media are invited to participate in this virtual press conference. Journalists must connect via Zoom (prior registration is required) as of 11:00 a.m. local time (UTC/GMT -3:00). Accredited journalists will be able to send their questions in writing via the Zoom platform's chat while the event is taking place. They can also send their queries to the email address [e-mail]. Questions will only be taken until 11:30 a.m. local time on Wednesday, December 16.

The presentation will also be transmitted on ECLAC's website and at https://live.cepal.org/.

The full electronic version of this new annual report by ECLAC, along with a press release and the presentation by Executive Secretary Alicia Bárcena, will be available on ECLAC's website and on the webpage of the COVID-19 Observatory in Latin America and the Caribbean on Wednesday, December 16, as soon as the press conference has concluded.

What: Launch of ECLAC's flagship annual report: Preliminary Overview of the Economies of Latin America and the Caribbean 2020.

Who: Alicia Bárcena, ECLAC's Executive Secretary.

When: Wednesday, December 16, 2020, 11:00 a.m. local time in Chile (GMT -03:00).

Where: Virtual connection via the Zoom platform (prior registration required).

https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_DdL1c9H5QZ2W5a73g7TFlw

Also via ECLAC's website and at https://live.cepal.org/.

For queries and to arrange interviews, contact ECLAC's Public Information Unit.

Email: [e-mail]; Telephone: [phone].