According to the latest report from the Economic Activity Monthly Index (IMAE), published by the Central Bank, the manufacturing and service industries are the engines that drive Costa Rican economy.
In May, 2015, the manufacturing industry had a growth of 10.7%. As in previous months, this increase is related to a bigger productive activity from the companies that are working to meet external product’s demands such as:
-Medical and dental instrument manufacture;
-Palm oil production;
-Orange juice and pineapple;
-Manufacturing of electronic and optic devices.
Meanwhile, service activities kept their monthly dynamism and explained the 58%, year-to-year growth observed in the indicator, highlighting their contributions in the following areas:
-Transport, storage and communications, with a 4.8 % growth mainly in telecommunication services, road transport and services related to inbound tourism.
-The business services grew 9.8% Among the activities that influenced this increase are call centers, cost centers, calculation program’s development and, to a lesser extent, legal services and advertising.
-Services of financial intermediation and insurance recorded a variation of 10.4%.
On the other hand, accommodation activity registered a 4.7 % growth. This was due to the rising participation of American tourists. Furthermore, the existence of new airlines, more destinations and frequency of flights has influenced the inbound tourism.
According to an analysis from Aldesa firm, it is possible that the economy continues to show positive growth levels, but these are not enough to achieve the 2016 growth goal because global economy is decelerating.