Geneva. - Latin America’s and the Caribbean’s economic growth will accelerate modestly in the next two years, of 3.9% in 2013 and 4.4% in 2014, according to UN projections released today, EFE reports.

Nonetheless the rates are an improvement over 2012’s significant slowdown in, a year that ended with the region’s overall GDP growth of 3.1%, compared with the 4.3% in 2011 and 6% in 2010.

The UN forecast, contained in its report on the Situation and Prospects on the World Economic Situation for 2013, downgrades growth rates released in June, when the UN projected growth of 4.4% for 2013 and 4.7% for 2014.

The report notes that a fall in the export sector and the prices of non-food commodities led to the 2012 slowdown, and considers that the recovery will be accompanied by moderate economic growth rates, subject to the materialization of the expected improved conditions in Brazil.

The UN expects Brazil, which slide from a 7.5% growth in 2010 to 1.3% in 2012, will grow 4% in 2013 (the June forecast in was 6%) and 4.4% in 2014 (previous forecast was 4.9%).

Panama is poised to pace the UN’s 2013 growth projections with 7.5%, followed by Paraguay (6.9%), Peru (5.8%), Dominican Republic ( 4.7%), Bolivia (4.7%), Chile (4.6%), Colombia (4.5%), Ecuador (4.4%), Costa Rica (4.4%), Uruguay (4 , 2%) and Nicaragua (4.2%).

Below the entire region’s 3.9% average figure  Mexico (3.8%), Guatemala (3.7%), Honduras (3.5%), Cuba (3.5%), Argentina (3 .2%), Venezuela (2.5%) and El Salvador (2.2%).

The report places particular emphasis on the effects of the fall of Latin American exports stoked by the U.S. and Europe crises, which went from a 28% jump in growth in the first half of 2011, to around 4% in the first half of 2012.

"The most significant decline was posted in shipments to the European Union, with export values ??falling at a rate of 4% per year and the price of export values ??at a rate of 3.4% per year. The price of minerals and metals exports fell even more, at a rate of 9.1%," the document says.