Politics will not mar Paraguay's economic outlook

Significance

The Central Bank has revised upwards its 2017 growth forecast from 3.7% to 4.2%. Forecasts by the IMF and World Bank remain lower at around 3.3% and 3.6% respectively, based primarily on an expectation of low growth in Brazil.

Impacts

• Agricultural exports will help sustain growth this year.
• Although debt is manageable, there are few prospects for raising low tax revenues.
• Investigations into the awarding of contracts are likely to put infrastructure investments on hold.