Regional Economic Bulletin: Central Coffee Region, First Quarter of 2026
The Regional Economic Bulletin is published by the Regional Economies Section of the Technical and Economic Information Department at Banco de la República. The views and potential errors are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not compromise Banco de la República or its Board of Directors.
The economy of the central coffee region expanded during the first quarter of the year, driven by higher household spending. However, its growth pace was slower than the one observed at the end of 2025, amid declining coffee income, slower employment growth, and cautious purchasing decisions by households and businesses. Meanwhile, industrial production, non-coffee exports, and imports increased, which was reflected in higher road freight transportation. Inflation rose due to upward pressures on food and service prices.
Rainfall during previous periods affected the coffee harvest and delayed the production cycles of other crops, reducing agricultural supply. The volume of milled and exported coffee declined due to unfavorable weather conditions. Together with the adjustment in international prices, this resulted in lower export values.
Effectively constructed area decreased due to slower progress in construction projects, particularly residential. This was associated with lower housing project launches, and housing starts recorded in previous periods, amid weak demand for new housing, particularly low-income housing (VIS in Spanish), affected by the absence of subsidies.
The region’s labor market showed positive results, although more moderate than those observed in previous quarters. Employment increased despite net job loss in construction and manufacturing sectors. Activities such as public administration offset this decline by generating additional employment opportunities.
Regional Economic Bulletin published to date (since 2025)
In order to present this content to the English-speaking public, since 2025 Banrep has been providing translations of the summaries. The full document, as well as the interactive bulletin, are published only in Spanish.
