Andrés Márquez, senior director for Latin America Financial Institutions at Fitch Ratings: “Amid declining inflation rates, Colombia’s economic landscape remains marked by low GDP growth and heightened uncertainty. The central bank has adopted an expansionary policy by cutting the policy interest rates, but political instability, volatile commodity prices and global economic uncertainty continue undermining investor confidence and consumer spending. To address these challenges, the Colombian government has negotiated an agreement with local banks to allocate 55 trillion pesos in credit over an 18-month period to targeted strategic economic sectors. This initiative aims to foster growth and stability in key areas without imposing mandatory lending requirements on the banks, thus avoiding President Petro’s initial proposal of compulsory investments. Under this agreement, banks will extend loans to sectors crucial for economic development, including agriculture, sustainable energy, mortgage loans and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). By avoiding…”