South America seeks new sources of growth

Lima

THE president of Venezuela calls for budget cuts as plummeting oil prices slash the country's export income. Peru relaxes environmental regulations to clear the way for major mining projects, hoping to lift production in the face of falling prices of copper, gold and other metals. In Brazil, hurt by slumping prices for iron and soya bean exports, a new, business-friendly Cabinet is expected to cut spending and eliminate tax breaks to shore up government finances.

For a decade, the continent was transformed by sustained economic growth and historic reductions in poverty, driven by a boom in prices for the region's abundant commodities, including oil, natural gas, copper, gold, iron, soya beans and corn.