UruguayChapters
In the past three decades, successive governments of Uruguay have declared and proven their long-term commitment to political and economic stability, in a regional environment characterised by strong volatility. The country has consistently scored highly on metrics of quality of democratic processes, transparency and control of corruption. Building on these achievements, Uruguay has also led a stable and prudent macroeconomic policy, and maintained high trade and investment openness.
In terms of regional and international finance and partnerships to catalyse international resources, Uruguay has launched several strategic initiatives to bolster industrial competitiveness and leverage sustainable energy transitions. The Green Hydrogen Roadmap, introduced by the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mining, aims to promote significant changes in energy sources and industrial raw materials and includes the establishment of a Single Investment Window for Green Hydrogen. Looking ahead to 2040, Uruguay aims to consolidate a green hydrogen industry capable of achieving an annual turnover of USD 1.9 billion and generating more than 30 000 quality jobs. This comprehensive strategy aligns Uruguay’s industrial development with global sustainability objectives, fostering economic growth and job creation through international private-sector investments in the green energy sector.
Source: OECD
Key indicators
- Area
- 176,215 km2
- Population
- 3,388,081 (2023)
- Government type
- presidential republic
- Languages
- Spanish (official, Rioplatense is the most widely spoken dialect)
- GDP
- $77.24 billion (2023)
- Growth rate
- 0.4% (2023)
- HDI
- 52
- Capital
- Montevideo
Macroeconomic indicators
Following the 2002 crisis, sound macroeconomic management and favorable external conditions supported a prolonged period of economic expansion. However, growth has slowed since 2015, amid normalizing commodity prices, the health crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, and climate shocks such as the severe drought that hit the country between October 2022 and August 2023. Despite the unfavorable context, Uruguay has maintained prudent fiscal management anchored in the fiscal rule and has the lowest sovereign spreads in the region.
In 2023, the economy grew by 0.4 percent, largely reflecting the drought-induced decline in agricultural production. Economic growth is expected to recover to 3.2 percent in 2024, driven by exports and private consumption, and supported by improvements in the labor market and inflation rates within the Central Bank of Uruguay’s target range.
Uruguay has been a pioneer in the development of financial instruments to address climate change. One key example is the recent approval of the first-ever loan linking the financing conditions of a World Bank loan with the achievement of ambitious environmental targets. This mechanism could lead to a reduction of up to US$12.5 million in interest payments over the life of the loan if Uruguay achieves a verifiable decrease in the intensity of methane gas emissions from livestock production.
Source: The World Bank
IMF Statistics:
| Subject descriptor | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Gross domestic product, constant prices Percent change (Units) |
5.562 |
4.707 |
0.367 |
3.179 |
3.021 |
|
Gross domestic product, current prices U.S. dollars (Billions) |
60.762 |
70.165 |
77.241 |
82.482 |
86.423 |
|
Gross domestic product per capita, current prices U.S. dollars (Units) |
17,149.709 |
19,737.342 |
21,656.979 |
23,053.261 |
24,080.444 |
|
Inflation, average consumer prices Percent change (Units) |
7.750 |
9.106 |
5.866 |
4.887 |
5.400 |
|
Volume of imports of goods and services Percent change (Units) |
17.593 |
12.545 |
1.956 |
1.302 |
4.865 |
|
Volume of exports of goods and services Percent change (Units) |
25.829 |
1.768 |
-3.880 |
8.267 |
4.565 |
|
Unemployment rate Percent of total labor force (Units) |
9.375 |
7.867 |
8.325 |
8.358 |
8.025 |
|
Current account balance U.S. dollars (Billions) |
-1.500 |
-2.750 |
-2.912 |
-2.265 |
-2.215 |
|
Current account balance Percent of GDP (Units) |
-2.469 |
-3.919 |
-3.770 |
-2.746 |
-2.563 |
Estimates
Source: IMF Statistics - Uruguay
Relationships with Luxembourg
Existing conventions and agreements
Non double taxation agreement
In order to promote international economic and financial relations in the interest of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Luxembourg government negotiates bilateral agreements for the avoidance of double taxation and prevent fiscal evasion with respect to Taxes on Income and on fortune with third countries.
- Convention from 10.03.2015 (Memorial 2016, A No.270, p.4924)
- Effective as of 01.01.2018 (Memorial 2016, A No.270, p.4924)
Air Services agreement
None
Further information
Foreign Trade
The Statec Foreign Trade statistics provide information on the trade of goods - by product and by country. This information is collected respectively through the INTRASTAT declaration and on the basis of customs documents.
You can see the statistics on the website of the Statec.
Country risk as defined by Office du Ducroire for Uruguay
Ducroire is the only credit insurer covering open account deals in over 200 countries. A rating on a scale from 1 to 7 shows the intensity of the political risk. Category 1 comprises countries with the lowest political risk and category 7 countries with the highest. Macroeconomics experts also assess the repayment climate for all buyers in a country.
Link: Ducroire Office - Country Risk for Uruguay
Other useful links