Grupo de Inversiones Suramericana : SURA Presents the 2017 Economic Outlook in the Interior of the Country

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Economist Laura Raffo analyzed the current situation in Uruguay at a meeting held at the Commercial and Industrial Center in Florida, Uruguay.

As one in a series of talks that SURA Asset Management Uruguay has been holding in the interior of the country, at the Florida Commercial and Industrial Center economist Laura Raffo offered a conference under the title 'Economic Outlook. Trends in the world's economy and current issues in Uruguay.

Raffo started her presentation talking about the global political and economic changes, referring to the slow-down of Europe's growth, and the situation of the United States in the dawn of the 'Trump Era'. The expert referred to the fall of the dollar, the growing relevance of China, the recovery of oil prices and the rebound in prices of Uruguay's exportable products in a South America that faces a more favorable external context but complex domestic problems at a country level.

'The region is slowly overcoming recession. Argentina begins to grow - albeit less than expected, while the economy of Brazil shows some good signs despite the country's political crisis,' the speaker added.

After presenting what is going on in the region, Raffo referred to the figures of the Uruguayan economy, highlighting its 5.6% inflation rate. Added to this, there is a budding recovery of exports, and some signs of improvement in retail sales.

She also highlighted the improvement observed in the latest measurement of the SURA Consumer Confidence Index, which rose to 51.3%. The businessmen's vision of the economic situation is also optimistic and they perceive a better business climate, although unemployment reached 9%, the highest rate in the last ten years.

After this analysis, Raffo presented the range of savings options designed by SURA Asset Management Uruguay, tailored to each client's capabilities.

'We understand it is important for people not to lose purchasing power or feel that saving is limited to those who handle important amounts. Our goal is to democratize savings, and to make the most of everybody's investment. On the other hand, we also have proposals that boost corporate resources and the most sophisticated investors, 'explained María José Frontini, commercial manager of SURA Asset Management Uruguay.

These tools included, among others, the SURA Protection Fund, which has four years of above-inflation yields, the Dollar Fund, the Conservative Fund, the Basic Savings Fund, and the SURA Stock Broker, a business line dedicated to clients wishing to diversify the investment with other amounts.

​The activity in Florida was preceded by similar ones in Colonia and Maldonado. The company plans to continue with the same series in other cities of the country, to discuss SURA's assessment of the economic landscape with its clients throughout Uruguay.

'Our idea is to expand on the financial context, to provide our clients all the information they need to make effective decisions, while enhancing their acquaintance with administration, management, investment and savings matters, whether at a personal or corporate level,' concluded Frontini.

About SURA Asset Management

SURA Asset Management is a Latin American company that operates in the areas of Pensions, Savings and Investment in Mexico, Peru, Chile, Colombia, Uruguay and El Salvador. It is a subsidiary of Grupo SURA, and has three minority shareholders: Grupo Bolívar, Bancolombia and Grupo Wiese. At the close of 2016, SURA Asset Management had a total of USD 113 billion in managed assets, which belong to 18.7 million customers.

* Customers and AUM include AFP Protección in Colombia and AFP Crecer in El Salvador; though they are not controlled companies, SURA AM holds a significant share.

SURA Asset Management Uruguay manages several business lines, including AFAP SURA, the second pension funds administrator in number of affiliates and managed funds in Uruguay; AFISA SURA, an Investment Fund manager that has public offering open-end funds authorized by the Central Bank of Uruguay, and SURA Stock Broker, which provides investment solutions adapted to specific financial needs and targets, offering access to a wide range of investment instruments.