Honduras Economy News

Prices for vegetables and legumes at Tegucigalpa's Feria del Agricultor have risen sharply—potatoes up 2 lempiras per pound, broccoli up 5, and red onions up 10–20—as drought in major farming zones like Lepaterique has cut production.

Honduras executed only 33.4% of its national budget in the first half of 2026, a shortfall economists attribute to Congress's late April approval, which delayed state investment in health, education, and infrastructure.

Eduardo Bennaton, president of Honduras's renewable-energy association, says rising electricity tariffs reflect dependence on imported inputs and is pressing lawmakers to approve reforms that would help bring renewable investments and energy independence to Honduras.

Honduras's net international reserves have accumulated $1.346 billion since January 27, with import coverage rising to 6.7 months, according to the central bank.

A JP Morgan Chase report ranks Honduras among Latin America's lowest-risk countries for investment, but economists say Honduras must improve public services and compete for capital to capitalize on the rating.

Juliette Handal, former president of Honduras's main business council (Cohep), attributed a first-quarter decline in investment to security concerns, including gang violence and massacres, rising energy costs (set to jump 12%), and international supply-chain disruptions, all of which she said undermine investor confidence.

Finance Minister Emilio Hércules said reducing an electricity rate hike requires a large fiscal cost to the state, since the tariff increase was originally set at 21.5%.

A petroleum-industry analyst predicts diesel and gasoline prices in Honduras will drop modestly over the next four to six weeks as global crude stabilizes around $67 a barrel, with diesel potentially falling about 2 lempiras per gallon.

Beginning July 20, Honduran taxpayers must generate FYDUCA payment receipts through SAR's Virtual Office online portal rather than in person.

Honduras spends more than 100 million lempiras (about $4 million) each day on public-employee salaries, with education receiving the largest budget allocation, according to former Education Minister Marlon Escoto.

The president of Honduras's renewable energy association says the recent electricity rate increase stems from global fuel prices rather than non-renewable generators, and calls for greater investment in clean energy to reduce dependence on imported fuel.

A consumer-defender monitoring shows nine of eleven staple products increased in price over the past week, led by beans and eggs, while only two items fell, prompting authorities to watch for speculation.

Rafael Medina, former head of Tegucigalpa's Chamber of Commerce, urged oil companies and transporters to pass falling global fuel prices to consumers quickly, noting that inflation jumped nearly 1.5 percentage points above year-ago levels partly because of earlier fuel-cost increases.

Honduras is offering a tax amnesty for registered cars, motorcycles, and other vehicles that allows owners to settle overdue payments quickly and with fewer bureaucratic hurdles.

Honduras and the Dominican Republic extended their memorandum of understanding between their investment promotion agencies for another year through July 2027, aimed at attracting foreign investment and strengthening bilateral economic ties.

Consumer advocates project that adjustments to electricity tariffs will increase the price of Honduras's basic food basket by about 800 lempiras (roughly $32).

The Central Bank of Honduras auctioned $86.5 million in a foreign-exchange sale on July 2, establishing a weighted average exchange rate of 26.7397 lempiras per dollar for July 3.

Honduras exported 6.66 million bags of coffee worth $2.11 billion from October 2025 through July 1, 2026—a 23% jump in volume and 12% gain in revenue over the same period a year earlier, driven by larger harvests despite lower global prices.

Honduras has spent only 34% of its 444-billion-lempira (about $16.8 billion) 2026 budget through June, with economists attributing the lag to late congressional approval and urging faster execution in priority areas like health, education, and productive investment.

Latin American and Caribbean countries are rolling out a digital Skills Passport starting in November 2026 that will use QR codes to verify workers' labor certifications, allowing employers quick access to verified talent information across the region.

Moody's confirmed Honduras's B1 sovereign credit rating with a stable outlook for the next 12 months, but warned that crime, political polarization, and weak institutions threaten the economy, while remittances remain a crucial economic pillar despite stricter US migration policies.

Darwin Ponce, president of the advocacy group Artículo 19, argues that comparing Honduras's food-basket prices to other countries ignores local purchasing power, and that the basic basket for a five-person urban family costs around 16,000 lempiras (about $640), not the four-person household basis some use.

ENEE manager Guillermo Peña Panting disclosed that the state electric utility's largest debtor is the government and its institutions, which owe approximately L14 billion of the utility's L18 billion in total accounts receivable.

Experts warn that a recent increase in power tariffs will drive up costs for basic foods, dairy, meat, and other essentials, as 85–90% of consumer products rely on electricity in production and storage.

Honduras' external debt climbed to $9.3 billion as of March 2026, up 13.3% over two years, prompting the business council to urge the government to prioritize efficient public spending and curb excessive borrowing.

The Central Bank of Honduras allocated $99.4 million in a foreign-exchange auction on July 1, setting the weighted average exchange rate at L26.7356 per dollar for July 2.

Credit to Honduras's private sector continues to grow favorably, driven by domestic-currency financing to businesses in productive sectors including services, real estate, and agriculture.

Honduras's coffee price slipped 0.8% year-over-year to $3.07 per kilogram in July, though the country remains among the world's top five coffee exporters and the crop sustains thousands of farming families.

Engineer Salomón Ordoñez warned that a 12.48% increase in electricity tariffs will raise living costs and dampen foreign investment, urging transparent bidding and cuts to power-system losses to stabilize rates.

Carlos Hernández, director of the advocacy group ASJ, warns that the state power utility ENEE has received 46 billion lempiras over four years while carrying a debt exceeding 100 billion lempiras, and continues to suffer from high losses, unfocused subsidies, and electricity theft.