Southern Cone

The Southern Cone (Spanish: Cono Sur, Portuguese: Cone Sul) is a geographical and cultural subregion composed of the southernmost areas of South America, mostly south of the Tropic of Capricorn. Traditionally, it covers Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay, bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the east by the Atlantic Ocean. In terms of social, economic and political geography, the Southern Cone comprises Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay, and sometimes includes Brazil's four southernmost states (Paraná, Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina, and São Paulo). In its broadest definition, taking into account common history and geography, it also includes Paraguay, another Spanish-speaking country.

The Southern Cone is the most prosperous subregion in Latin America due to and shown by its high life expectancy, the highest Human Development Index of Latin America, high standard of living, low fertility rates, temperate climate, significant participation in global markets, and the emerging economy of its members (Argentina, Uruguay and Chile); which are located at latitudes in the southern hemisphere that would correspond in the northern hemisphere to the United States, Canadian provinces, European countries (except Scandinavia), northern China, the Korean peninsula and Japan.