Andean Group - November 2006 (ISSN 1741-4466)

Statistically, the economy is doing well though there is no feel-good factor. The reason for this is, probably, the lack of new jobs. The unemployment rate is actually rising. In August it hit 12.9% up from 11.4% 12 months earlier. The problem is what is happening in rural areas. In cities, the unemployment rate is continuing to fall: in August 2006 it was 12.9% down from 13.5% in the same month of 2005.
The government prefers to stress the 30% increase in investment in the first six months of 2006, compared with the same period of 2005. Foreign investors are also keen on Colombian securities. At the end of October the government sold US$469m in bonds. The issue was seven times over subscribed (attracting bids worth over US$3bn).

Inflation: Inflation is another of the indicators going the government's way. In October inflation was minus -0.14 %. This is a significant improvement on September when the rate was 0.29%. The 10-month figure is 4% and the 12-month rate is 4.2%, which is a substantial improvement on 2005's 6.5% rate.