Colombia records highest annual GDP figures
Brussels, Feb 14 (EFE).- President Ivan Duque Marquez on Monday announced that Colombia had registered an annual economic growth of more than 10.2% in 2021, the highest ever since the country became a republic in the 19th century.
“I want to express to the Colombian people from Brussels that the Colombian economy grew by more than 10.2% in 2021, meaning that we have achieved the highest economic growth in the history of our republic,” Duque said during a meeting with the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen at the EC headquarters in Brussels.
Duque added that evaluations by the Colombian finance ministry show that figures in December 2021 confirm that the Colombian economy grew more than expected.
In a speech delivered before the Davos Economic Forum on January 19, Duque expected the Colombian GDP to grow by 9.7% in 2021 after nearly two years of the coronavirus pandemic.
He also stressed that the ongoing economic recovery is linked to strong sustainability and a climate action agenda, recalling von der Leyen’s support for his country’s salvage policy.
The Colombian government had already upgraded its annual growth outlook in December 2021 from a previous forecast of 8.5% to 9.7%.
However, indicators on Monday exceeded this figure, thanks to positive retail sales and better industrial production in October 2021 that grew by 14.2% and 10.1% respectively compared to October 2020.
Most of the recent data show the Colombian economy has increased in Q3 against Q2 of 2021 by 5.7%, and 13.2% compared to Q3 of 2020, placing it only behind Chile as the region’s best-performing economy. EFE
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