Peru

With a banking penetration rate hovering around 30% and an expanding middle class, Peru represents a solid growth opportunity for the banking industry. Lending activity jumped by 23% in 2012, with much of this coming from a rise in consumer and retail loans. The banking sector is forecast to continue to expand rapidly, with loan growth projected at between 15% and 20% in 2013. While rapid...

Over the course of the past decade Peru has recorded impressive economic growth, posting rates in excess of 6% from 2010-12. Though the pace of growth is estimated to slow to between 5.2% and 5.4% in 2013, mainly due to external shocks, observers are cautiously optimistic about Peru’s prospects for continued economic development. While the mining and hydrocarbons sectors continue to account for...

Once known as a country blighted by economic and social upheaval, Peru has now experienced more than two decades of progress. Political and economic reforms implemented in the 1990s and reinforced in the 2000s have resulted in stability and a generally liberalised economy. The fourth-most-populous country in Latin America, Peru enjoys a rich heritage shaped by both Amerindian and Hispanic...

The mobile segment has been responsible for driving growth in Peru’s telecoms sector, which expanded by 16.4% in 2011. While growth in 2012 is expected to cool down, new revenue streams from sources such as mobile data will continue to make the sector an important source of foreign direct investment. Meanwhile, with internet teledensity in the country still relatively low, at 4.39% in 2011, the...

In 2010 Peru was among the world’s top 10 producers of a variety of minerals, among them gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, tin and mercury. Commodity prices of copper and gold have kept revenues high despite a decline in production over the last several years. Exports increased from $3.2bn in 2000 to $21.7bn in 2010, posting average annual growth of 58% during that period. While the mining...

The exploitation of the Camisea natural gas field has attracted investors to Peru and caused the country to look more closely at the potential of its hydrocarbons industry. The government has also turned its focus to oil production, with state-owned energy company Petroperú stating it hopes to triple oil production over the next four years and thereby turn Peru from a net importer of crude to a...