This article analyzes the impact of free-banking on the banking sector in Latin America in the 19th and early 20th centuries. I use data for seven countries to compare the entry of banks and the growth of bank output prior and after the enactment of free-banking laws to determine whether free-banking (by establishing general requirements for granting note-issuance rights) lowered barriers to entry. The results show that in most Latin American countries the adoption of free-banking laws did not cause in the short run an increase in bank entry and in bank output growth.

This article estimates the social savings of the railroads in Peru in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The construction of railroads made it possible for Peruvians to substitute the traditional system of mules and llamas, although only for a few routes. Using primary and secondary sources, I estimate the social savings for 1890, 1904, 1914 and 1918. Social savings ranged between 0.4% and 1.4% of GDP in 1890, but then increased to a range between 3.7% and 9.5% of GDP in 1918. The social savings of railroads in Peru were comparable to those for the United States and Great Britain, but were much lower than those for Mexico, Brazil and Argentina.

El proyecto estudia veinte mercados de drogas urbanas alrededor del mundo, cada uno en diferente fase de madurez y con características diferentes. El objetivo del estudio en Lima fue obtener un mejor entendimiento de los factores subyacentes que influyen en el proceso de toma de decisión que sostiene el involucramiento en los mercados de droga de proveedores, comerciantes y consumidores.