CHILE
Analysts
Robert Funk
Former President, Political Science Association
Igal Magendzo
Former Manager of Macro Analysis, Central Bank
Andrés Velasco
Former Finance MinisterDatabank
Events
Recent Country Insights
A very soft landing, with plenty of turbulence
CHILE · Report · 21 Mar 2023
Chilean economic activity has been moving away from the protracted decline observed in the second half of 2022. The Monthly Economic Activity Index surprised positively in January. The breakdown by sectors showed widespread improvement. Nevertheless, services continued to lead the way. The real q...
Cabinet shuffle in Chile
CHILE · In Brief · 10 Mar 2023 · 1 response
If a week is a long time in politics, this one was endless, especially for president Gabriel Boric. On Wednesday the government’s tax reform was voted down in the House of Deputies. Although the government was quick to blame the opposition – and the opposition indeed opposed the reform as it was ...
Chile signs on to TPP11
CHILE · In Brief · 24 Feb 2023
In the 1990s and 2000s, signing free trade agreements became almost routine for Chile. But when Chile’s adhesion to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP, or TPP11) finally became official this week, it was a big deal. One of the slogans of Chile’s 2019 ...
Stagflation ain’t over yet
CHILE · Report · 13 Feb 2023 · 2 responses
The Monthly Economic Activity Index (IMACEC) showed relatively favorable results in December. But given the adverse outlook for 2023, negative 12-month variations will continue in coming months. At the sectorial level, it is worth differentiating between cases where there were additional advances...
Life is not easy for any of us
CHILE · Report · 29 Dec 2022
Chilean economic activity as measured by the IMACEC grew in October, due to a temporary increase in mining and a recovery in commerce. But the 12-month variation of the IMACEC fell into negative territory. Retail sales also increased, due to a successful Cyber Day. But the outlook for consumption...
Chile's Constitutional Agreement: More Details and Responses
CHILE · In Brief · 19 Dec 2022
An update to our earlier report on the agreement reached on Chile’s new constitutional process. As we indicated last week, the process will begin with the selection by Congress of a Committee of Experts, to be followed by an election for a new constituent assembly, to be called a Constitutional C...
Chile's Constitutional Process 2.0
CHILE · In Brief · 12 Dec 2022
After three months of negotiation, the parties in Congress have agreed on the basic outline of a new process to draft – once again – a constitutional proposal. The details still need to be hammered out, especially among senators, but the general agreement consists of a Committee of Experts who wi...
The economy heads down while politicians head nowhere
CHILE · Report · 29 Nov 2022
National accounts for Q3 2022 corroborate the weakening trend in economic activity. While in H1 2022 economic activity was stagnant, in Q3 seasonally-adjusted GDP fell, to its lowest level since Q2 2021. Investment reverted the decline of Q1 2022, returning to Q4 2021 levels. By contrast, househo...
Boric's pension reform proposal
CHILE · In Brief · 03 Nov 2022 · 3 responses
In a nationally televised speech President Gabriel Boric announced his much-awaited plan for reforming Chile's pension system. The proposal consists of three elements: a 6% increase in contributions, financed by employers; a rise in the so-called Universal Guaranteed Pension to CLP250.000 (about ...