832 new retail centers for Latin America by 2025

There are currently 1555 shopping center within Peru, Mexico, Colombia, Chile, Brazil and Argentina, but that figure is set to increase to 2387 by 2025.

This increase in development will increase the mall penetration rate in these countries from 10.8 square meters per 100 people to 16 square meters.  These are the countries that account for around 87% of malls in Latin America, as well as 76% of its overall population. 

Although the retail real estate industry is showing growth, it is not without challenges.  One of the main areas of competition is from the informal retail sector. Brazil experiences smuggled merchandise from Paraguay, with counterfeit merchandise rife in the open markets of Colombia and Mexico.  The massive disparity in wealth remains a huge problem in Latin America.  Chile enjoys the highest average annual per capita income of $20072 within the region.

Chile has the highest urban mall penetration at 22.2m² per 100 citizens, with Mexico second at 16.9m² per 100 citizens.  Colombia is at 10.8m² per 100 people, followed by Peru, Brazil and Argentina, with 9.2, 7.8 and 5.4m² respectively.
The population in Latin America is increasingly urban, as is the rest of the world.  Family sizes are declining and life expectancy is increasing.

The economies of all countries in Latin America, other than Venezuela and Argentina, are due to experience growth during this year, although economic growth will slow down over the next few years.  The employment growth rate in Latin America is still higher than the global average.  

More about shopping malls in Brazil