Peru’s latest recession-fighting strategy is to offer more government-back loans to weather-hit industries such as agriculture and fishing.
The government will make an additional 10 billion soles ($2.6 billion) in government-backed loans available at below-market rates, to be offered via private banks, Finance Minister Alex Contreras told reporters in Lima on Thursday.
Read More: Peru Top Bank Says Recession Is Spreading to Unpaid Loans
The funding addresses a new concern as the recession drags on: that businesses may soon be missing payments to suppliers.
Peru’s economy has shrunk for four straight months this year and is facing headwinds from wetter weather next year due to El Niño. Still, Contreras said the economy will recover in the fourth quarter, although his past predictions of a rebound haven’t panned out.
