*  *  *  I would like to thank JP Morgan for the opportunity to share my views on this panel. In addressing the recent economic trends in Guatemala and the main policy issues, I would first like to highlight some specific features of the current international context that directly affect Guatemala’s economy.
As the scale of this bubble was relatively small, the burden associated with balance-sheet repair should be smaller in the United States. BIS central bankers’ speeches  3  The second difference is with regard to the speed of dealing with non-performing assets, which, importantly, reflects differences in the two economies’ financing structures (Chart 13).