DEC alternative conversion factor (LCU per US$) - Central America & the Caribbean

Definition: The DEC alternative conversion factor is the underlying annual exchange rate used for the World Bank Atlas method. As a rule, it is the official exchange rate reported in the IMF's International Financial Statistics (line rf). Exceptions arise where further refinements are made by World Bank staff. It is expressed in local currency units per U.S. dollar.

Description: The map below shows how DEC alternative conversion factor (LCU per US$) varies by country in Central America & the Caribbean. The shade of the country corresponds to the magnitude of the indicator. The darker the shade, the higher the value. The country with the highest value in the region is Costa Rica, with a value of 584.90. The country with the lowest value in the region is Cayman Islands, with a value of 0.83.

Source: International Monetary Fund, International Financial Statistics, supplemented by World Bank staff estimates.

See also: Country ranking, Time series comparison

More maps: Africa | Asia | Central America & the Caribbean | Europe | Middle East | North America | Oceania | South America | World |

Statistical Concept and Methodology: The World Bank systematically assesses the appropriateness of official exchange rates as conversion factors. An alternative conversion factor is used when the official exchange rate is judged to diverge by an exceptionally large margin from the rate effectively applied to domestic transactions of foreign currencies and traded products. This applies to only a small number of countries, as shown in the country-level metadata. Alternative conversion factors are used in the Atlas methodology and elsewhere in World Development Indicators as single-year conversion factors.

Periodicity: Annual

General Comments: In the WDI database, the DEC alternative conversion factor is used to convert data in local currency units (LCU) into U.S. dollars.