Ecuador: a challenging recovery
With severe earthquakes, massive debts and low crude oil prices, Ecuador’s way ahead appears uncertain. The country’s future is dependent on the outcome of the 2017 elections and a recovery in oil prices to get the economy moving again in the right direction under positive leadership. By Rob Roy, ROI Consulting, USA.
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Ecuador faces an uncertain future, but next year's presidential elections may provide the potential for change
Ecuadorian cement consumption is expected to decline for the third-consecutive year in 2016 following a decade of mostly strong growth. This demand pattern closely tracks the up-and-down course of global crude oil prices as Ecuador, OPEC’s smallest member, has fallen on hard times, along with most major oil-producing countries. Government mismanagement, local corruption and natural disasters are also taking their toll on the South American country and its recovery is expected to be slow and challenging.