MADRID, (CCICOM). The news about the Dominican Republic, “happily is good” and presents us as a scenario of opportunities for local and international banks, because there are enough indicators that the recovery of the economy is already underway, and it is recognized that we have been successful in the management of the pandemic that has had a negative global impact.
Enrique de Marchena, past president of the Association of Hotels and Tourism of the Dominican Republic (ASONAHORES) and experienced lawyer with more than 35 years in the promotion of foreign investment.
In March of last year, he explained, the pandemic caused by COVID19 forced the country to enter an emergency period that paralyzed almost all economic activity, but the Dominican Republic projects by August to have achieved herd immunization, and it is one of the three Latin American countries that is expected to conclude 2021 with notable success in the vaccination process of its population.
The achievements objected to in the management of the health crisis have been possible, he explained, due to the public-private collaboration to face the pandemic, the attitude of participation of the population and social organizations; and the sum of these factors is what made it possible for us to speak today that the economic recovery is underway.
The Dominican economy said de Marchena, after registering an important activity at the beginning of the year, fell sharply in April 2020 by -29.8% due to the closure of the economy, and now at the end of March 2021, it was registered a growth of 10.6%.
The Central Bank, informed, projects for the year 2021, a growth of the economy of 5.5%, and this has been endorsed by recognized risk assessment firms and by major international banks that follow the country with interest.
De Marchena highlighted that in the activities that lead the recovery of the economy, at the end of the first four months, they are in the first place the foreign investment that in January-March totaled US$851.1 million mainly in real estate, mining, and communications; and foreign exchange earnings from national exports, free zones, tourism, family remittances, foreign investment and other services as a whole, have been extraordinary, reaching US$7.511 million, an increase of US $ 220 million compared to the same period of 2020.
He explained that one of the main sources of this growth are remittances sent by Dominicans residing abroad, mainly in the United States and Europe, which totaled US$3,459.5 million (+ 64.9%) in the months January-April.
He cited that the most active sectors of the economy are the export processing zones and tourism, which have become true engines of the economy. Tourism in the 2010-2019 period contributed an average annual income of more than US$5,898 billion, as a result of the arrival of an average of tourists of more than 5 million.
In January-April 2021, we received more than one million tourists (1,186,613), mainly from the United States (Canada and Europe are lagging behind), an indicator that tourism began its reactivation and the government has made a great effort in this matter and created the conditions that are promoting important investments in the renovation, maintenance, opening and construction of new hotels; and North American groups such as Marriot, Hilton, Hyatt and Posadas (Mexico) are very active, the latter recently inaugurated its first establishment in the country and has other projects under development.
These trends, Marchena pointed out, ensure that tourism will play an important role and will be an important source in the recovery of the economy and the economic growth of the country in the coming years.
I point out that the industrial free zones were the first sector that reactivated 100% of its employees and has reported a growth of 32.4% (tobacco, jewelry, pharmaceutical products, and medical technology) as of March 2021 compared to last year; and also the mining sector with + 21.4% (mainly ferronickel, gold and construction materials).
In that quarter, exports increased by 38%, reaching US$2,896.6 million, an increase of 7.5% (approximately US$230 million). In the financial sector, the banking sector also showed its solidity, maintaining adequate levels of solvency, liquidity, and profitability.
Source:
Infotur
