The Chilean economy grew by a solid 5.6% of GDP in 2012, and domestic demand rose 7.1%. Private consumption (up 6.1%) and investment (12.3%) led the demand increase, while exports grew just 1%. The current account turned in a deficit of $ 9.5 billion, equivalent to 3.5% of GDP, due mainly to a shortfall ...

The Chilean economy, measured by several activity indicators, again grew well above market expectations. Even though economic growth is not fueling inflation, some of its side effects, such as the deterioration of the current account deficit and a tight labor market, are signaling some overheating. ...

Economic performance has been stronger than was expected a few months ago. Despite a relatively more negative external scenario (trading partners likely grew at an average rate of 3.3% in 2012 compared to 4.2% in 2011) the Chilean economy has remained dynamic, fueled by strong domestic demand. The ...

On January 2, Central Bank of Chile Governor Rodrigo Vergara participated in a special session at the Finance Committee of the Lower Chamber of the Chilean Congress. The purpose of the special session was to analyze the situation of the real estate market and the potential risk of a real estate bubble....

The Central Bank of Chile (CBC) just released its Monetary Policy Report (IPoM). In the current scenario the Central Bank expects that real GDP will grow 5.5% this year 2012 (up from 4.75 to 5.25% last September) and between 4.25 to 5.25% next year (up from 4.0 to 5.0% in the previous Monetary Policy ...

We expect Chile to weather the European crisis fairly well: though deteriorating global conditions will eventually affect the economy, the country is still quite resilient. The government is ready with both fiscal and monetary ammunition – although with less of a budget margin than it had in 2008-2009....

The Chilean economy seems to be living an Aesop's Fable, "The Boy Who Cried Wolf." The slowdown should have hit by Q4, according to various economic expectation surveys and projections. Now those forecasts look like false alarms – just like the false warnings sounded by the boy who wrongly claimed a ...

The Chilean economy is holding up better than expected, with economic activity up 6.2% y/y in June, the second highest growth rate for the year. Yet we still expect slowdown in H2, given the worsening outlook for the global economy. We keep our 2012 GDP growth projection at about 5%. The first signs ...

Despite the recent turbulence in the global economy, international economic conditions remain, at the margin, favorable for Chile. But if the slowdown of the Eurozone persists – as it probably will – it will surely have a negative impact on major emerging markets, and consequently on Chile. Preliminary ...

President Sebastian Piñera announced last Thursday the contents of a tax reform bill to fund an educational reform. The tax reform seeks to collect between US$ 700 million and US$ 1 billion, equivalent to 0.3-0.4% of GDP. The bill should be sent to Congress today....

On 19 March, the Central Bank of Chile unveiled the new National Accounts series for the period 2003-2011. The principal change is the utilization of the 2008 benchmark compilation, which features improvements in methodology and sources of information, and the adoption of a chained moving price base ...

The performance of the economy continues to surprise. Economic activity in January, measured by the IMACEC, recorded an unexpected increase of 5.5%, well above market forecasts of 4.3%. It seems that the effects on Chile of the Euro zone crisis were postponed. And the labor market continues to tighten,

The December economic data came full of positive surprises. The economy continues to grow, suggesting the global slowdown is not yet happening in a way that will affect Chile. Despite the good figures, recent we still expect that the global turmoil will reflect in a smooth but significant convergence ...

At last the global turmoil caused by the Euro financial crisis is beginning to spill over into Chile. The recent slowdown in economic activity is reflecting a smooth but significant convergence to growth rates close to 4%. The good news is that domestic demand and increased consumption of households ...

The economy grew 4.8 percent in the third quarter of the current year, accumulating an annual increase of 7.0 percent in the first three quarters of 2011. Domestic demand expanded 9.4 percent in the third quarter of 2011, up from an 8.6 percent increase in the second quarter. Private consumption kept ...

It seems that the uncertainty caused by the financial crisis in the Euro area and the growing likelihood of a recession in the euro zone is already reaching our shores –but only gradually so. The Chilean economy, measured by the Imacec, grew 3.4% yoy in October, considerably below market expectations ...

After two months of relatively slow performance, economy activity exhibited better-than-expected dynamism in September. The Chilean economy, measured by the Imacec, grew 5.7% in September, exceeding market expectations, which were around 5.4% according to previous surveys. The improved performance was ...

Recent activity indicators have started to show signs of deceleration. It is not clear yet whether this is part of the normal slowdown as the economy converges to its potential output growth or whether this is a reflection of the weakness of global demand.





In September the ...

Recent data shows signs of deceleration in economic activity. The July IMACEC (index of economic activity) exhibited the lowest rate of growth since March 2010, when the effects of the earthquake and tsunami hit economic activity. The key question moving forward will be if this lower growth is in line ...

The Chilean economy continues to grow strongly, though with some signs of moderation at the margin. The May IMACEC showed a 7.3% yoy increase, slightly above market expectations. May´s results were mainly influenced by industrial and commercial activities and to a lesser extent by transport services....

We feel that the market is slightly too optimistic about growth for this year. We feel that the general outlook of the world economy is deteriorating much faster than expected and that there is still a probability that the Central Bank will not be able to avoid a sharper tightening as a result of an ...

Given the pro cyclical tendencies of local forecast, the exceptional growth rates of the first quarter of 2011 were bound to impact on expected growth rates for the year. Until March expected growth rates for 2011 were fixed at 6 percent (where they had been since last September). In April and May they ...