Clean bill of health.

Latin America cleaned up its economy over the last 10 years. The region's gross domestic product (GDP) grew a respectable 8% to US$1.69 trillion during the 19942003 period. Inflation, once a scourge, dropped in 2003 to a sustainable 11.2% from an average 127.9% in 1994, a year of runaway consumer prices that made economic management a nightmare.

The good news continues. The current account balance, an indicator that measures the flow of money in and out of the region, broke into positive territory in 2003, reaching a 0.3% surplus--small, but the first such surplus in 50 years. Positive trade and financial flows aside, the region's economies are still servicing hefty external debts: $743.10 billion in 2003, 30% more than in 1994. However, the level of external debt burdens as a percentage of total export revenues dropped to 199.8% in 2003 from 302.8% in 1994, leaving the region less leveraged and better able to withstand swings in the global economy.

Exports grew by more than 97% since 1994, due primarily to higher volumes of goods sent abroad, not just higher prices. Demand for raw materials in Asia has skyrocketed in recent years, while countries of the region entered flee-trade deals with one another and elsewhere.

Net foreign direct investment hit $29 billion in 2003, up 16% from 1994, although both figures pale in comparison to the $79 billion invested in Latin America in 1999 alone, when foreign banks, telecommunications and energy companies bought assets across the hemisphere.

While 2003 showed improvement. the road to get there was anything but smooth. The region dealt with a string of global financial crises that triggered recessions and rising unemployment levels.