15-10-2020 Latin American Weekly Report

Latin American Weekly Report

15/10/2020 - Ecuador’s economic course at stake in upcoming elections

Ecuador is gearing up for general elections in February 2021 that will shape its future economic direction. The two frontrunners have diametrically opposed visions of the lines on which the country’s economy should be run. Guillermo Lasso, of the right-of-centre Movimiento Creo, second in the last two presidential contests, is a former banker and advocate of orthodox, free-market economics; Andrés Arauz, who is running on the left-wing Unidos por la Esperanza (Unes) ticket affiliated with former president Rafael Correa (2007-2017), is a free-spending populist. With a record 17 candidates in the race an outsider could yet emerge. In the meantime, Richard Martínez tendered his resignation as economy and finance minister on 7 October and was replaced by a veteran predecessor in the post, Mauricio Pozo, who promptly announced his intention to advance several key economic reforms sponsored by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

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