Costa Rica’s economy to grow less than expected this year

Central Bank President Rodrigo Bolaños said Tuesday that economic growth this year will be less than the 4 percent forecast in January.

Bolaños did not offer new growth projections, saying only that he expects those numbers to be ready next month.

The announcement comes at the same time that the Central Bank revised its calculation of the Monthly Index of Economic Activity (IMEI) after detecting an error in the computer system that registers the country’s foreign trade, specifically figures related to free-zone based businesses.

The correct value for the first four months of 2013 is now 2.1 percent, instead of the 3.4 percent previously reported.

The correction creates a larger deficit in the trade balance as the adjustment was recorded in the country’s export figures.

Annual inflation is expected to remain within the 5 percent forecast, Bolaños said.