Economy & Business - November 2022

ECUADOR | Draft budget presented. On 31 October, Ecuador’s Finance Minister Pablo Arosemena presented the national assembly with the government’s budget for 2023, which outlines planned spending of US$31.50bn – a 3.5% increase on the 2022 budget. This will entail an expected fiscal deficit of US$2.63bn (2.14% of GDP). Social spending would represent nearly half of government costs, amounting to US$15.27bn – up from the current US$14.5bn. The budget was based on the following economic forecasts for 2023: GDP growth of 3.1%, with nominal GDP expected to come in at US$122.36bn; oil production of 514,759 barrels per day, with an average price of US$65 per barrel; and average annual inflation of 2.55%.