June 2013: PR’s Emerging Economic Fiber

Puerto Rico’s own Great Recession has already left an indelible mark on the local economy with several important issues still unresolved. The channels through which microeconomic activities typically unfold are in disequilibrium. Moreover, the Puerto Rican economy has not responded to economic fundamentals for some years, not because policy makers are consistently getting it wrong but rather because the fundamentals themselves have not stopped changing. As a result, old practices are dying out while new ones are emerging in response to these very fluctuations.  These changes will create challenges in the form of market gaps and unmet demand that will transform the way businesses are conducted on the Island. This second installment on local SMEs examines how the new emerging economic fundamentals are creating opportunities for small-scale businesses.  Hence, not everything is lost for the Island.