The Monthly Index of Economic Activity (Imacec) of Chile, which is considered an advance estimate of the gross domestic product (GDP), registered a decrease of 2.1% year-on-year in March, the Central Bank reported on Tuesday.
The result, which registers a greater drop than expected for the third month of the year, was explained “mainly due to the drop in mining and trade”, affirmed the issuing entity.
“The decrease in Imacec in seasonally adjusted terms was explained by most of its components, which was partially offset by the increase in services”, added the institution.
The production of goods fell 3.5%, a result that was mainly explained by the 8.5% decrease in mining. Meanwhile, the manufacturing industry fell 2.5% and the rest of goods grew 1.2%.
Commercial activity presented a decrease of 5.4%, due to the performance of retail trade, which registered lower sales in supermarkets, large stores and specialized clothing and footwear establishments.
Wholesale trade, for its part, also fell, although to a lesser extent due to sales of raw materials, food and household goods. The automotive trade presented positive results.
Finally, services increased by 0.9%, with personal services making the greatest contribution, followed by business services.
The Chilean economy grew a historic 11.7% in 2021 – after the sharp drop of 5.8% in 2020 – and recovered faster than expected after the pandemic; However, government aid and various savings withdrawals from pension funds triggered inflation to 7.2% in December 2021, a figure that doubled in less than a year, reaching 14.1% in August 2022, the highest level in the last 30 years.
The Central Bank took unprecedented measures and withdrew the monetary stimulus. Last October it raised the referential interest rate, called the Monetary Policy Rate (TPM), to 11.25%, its highest level since 2001, and has maintained it that way ever since.
In 2022, economic growth slowed down to 2.4%, a lower percentage than initial estimates. For 2023, the issuing entity projects a contraction of between -1.75% and -0.75% and estimates that inflation will converge to the 3% target in the second half of 2024.
Source: EFE
Source: Gestion
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