After the ‘discovery’ of Asia in recent year, is Latin America the next big thing for Australian exporters?
Certainly, there is potential. After all, South America alone is home to nearly 330 million people, spread over 13 diverse nations, producing a combined GDP of around $1.8 trillion. Its economic performance has improved compared to the inflation and debt-ridden days of the 1970s and 1980s. There has even been a restoration of democracy in many of the countries, which has enhanced political stability. Traditionally, Latin America has been a small export market for Australia. Our exports have mainly been commodity-based with coal and alumina being sold to the ‘big three’ in South America or what is sometimes termed the other ‘ABC’ – that is Argentina, Brazil and Chile. In some case, Latin American countries have been direct competitors to Australia particularly in agriculture and other commodity-based exports. So what has changed to make Latin America a more attractive option for Australian exporters? First of all, as the Latin American economic performance has improved which has increas
