Costa Rica's Social Security System reported on Monday that 2008 saw job cuts almost across the board, with construction and industrial sectors hit especially hard, shedding 4,800 and 1,200 posts, respectively – telltale signs the nation's economy is buckling amid the global downturn.

Vargas, strategy manager at financial consulting firm Aldesa, believes Costa Rica has entered a recession.

“Many sectors started to contract a few months ago, such as construction, hotels and retail, and gross domestic product (GDP) seems to be contracting already,” he wrote Monday morning during an online chat with The Tico Times readers.

He continued, “There is no universal definition of recession. Some economists use two consecutive quarters with negative GDP growth as a measure. Second and third quarters of 2008 have negative GDP readings, and IMAE (monthly indicator of economic activity) suggests the economy has been contracting since April.”

For more of Vargas' comments, from tourism to real estate to investment and small businesses, see the chat's full transcript at www.ticotimes.net/chats.htm.