Santiago de Chile.- The Chilean
economy grew 3.1% in the second quarter of this year compared to the same period of 2024, with a key role for mining, commerce, manufacturing and personal services, the Central Bank reported this Monday.
"This result was consistent with higher domestic demand, where the contribution of investment stood out," the organization indicated, in a year-on-year variation that was above market expectations.
Domestic demand, in that line, increased by 5.8%, reflecting the growth of investment and, to a lesser extent, household consumption.
Mining, for its part, registered a 4% growth, a result explained by a greater production of copper, the main export of the South American country, and, to a lesser extent, of non-metallic minerals.
"The observed increase in copper mining was a consequence of higher performance in concentrator plants, consistent with better ore grades," stated the issuing entity.
For 2026 and 2027, the Central Bank projected in mid-year, the growth ranges are between 1.5% and 2.5%, taking into consideration "the effects of the deterioration of the external scenario", among other factors.
Regarding inflation, the organization then moderated the upward risks that had arisen at the beginning of the year, and will reach the 3% target by mid-2026.
Chile recovered faster than expected after the pandemic, but in 2022 it began to slow down and closed with a growth of 2.2%.
With the 2024 figures, the average growth of the first three years of the progressive Gabriel Boric's government is 1.8%. For this year, the World Bank projects that Chile will grow by 2.1%.