Three decades ago, Mexico outperformed the Dominican Republic in terms of income per capita. Today, the picture is markedly different: the Dominican Republic’s GDP per capita is 10% higher than Mexico’s, according to data cited by Forbes México.
This information was disclosed by Ernesto Revilla, Chief Economist for Latin America at Citigroup, during the Seminar on Economic Outlook 2026 organized by the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM).
According to the publication, in 1990 Mexico stood well above the Dominican Republic in terms of per capita income. However, this trend began to shift over recent decades. By 2020, the Dominican Republic and China had reached similar levels, and by 2024 both the Caribbean nation and the Asian economy had surpassed Mexico.
Based on data from the World Bank, the Dominican Republic recorded GDP growth of 5.0% in 2024, representing an increase of 2.8 percentage points compared to 2023.
Revilla explained that one of Mexico’s main macroeconomic challenges is its low economic growth rate. During the administration of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Mexico’s economy grew by an average of just 0.9% per year. According to Forbes, the expert noted that, in per capita income terms, the Mexican economy has virtually not grown over the past six years.
According to the Ministry of Economy of the Dominican Republic, the average exchange rate in 2024 stood at RD$59.58 per U.S. dollar, very close to the figure projected in the August 2024 Macroeconomic Framework (RD$59.82), representing a cumulative depreciation of 6.07%.
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