Meeting of the Mercosur Macroeconomic Monitoring Group

The Meeting of the Macroeconomic Monitoring Group (GMM in Spanish) of Mercosur and Associated States was held virtually on April 14, 2021. The event was attended by delegations from Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Bolivia (a country in the process of accession to Mercosur), and Chile (as associated state).

The GMM has been charged with the preparation and monitoring of a common method for harmonizing macroeconomic statistics in the region, and with the monitoring of topics of common interest, as requested by the ministers of economy and central bank governors of Mercosur. The group gathers twice over a six-month period in the country that holds temporary presidency of Mercosur.

On this occasion, proposals for improving the group performance were analyzed and discussed. The group agreed to analyze over the next six-month period the results of public policies in the face of the pandemic: lessons learnt and potential macroeconomic policy coordination to achieve a sustainable, inclusive and resilient growth rate. With this in mind, the economic policy measures taken by the different countries will be registered and discussed at a seminar that will take place prior to the second meeting of the GMM to be held next June.

Finally, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean made a presentation on the international and regional economic situation. They highlighted a scenario of economic recovery for the region making allowances for the risks posed by the pandemic, and the increase in long-term interest rates in advanced countries with limited vaccination supply and scarce room for policy action.

They also emphasized that the IMF special drawing rights should be supplemented by mechanisms for their reallocation to developing countries, and that country members should make efforts to sustain public expenditure with leveraged tax revenue increases based on a progressive tax structure.

April 21, 2021.

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