Macroeconomic outlook report: Chile

The economic activity in Chile slowed down during the first quarter of 2022 compared to the previous quarter. This slowdown was driven by rising inflation. The year-on-year rate of change in GDP was lower than in the previous two quarters, but still showed solid growth of 6.88%. On the other hand, the labour market remained steady. The unemployment rate declined to 7.53%, while employment recorded another positive year-on-year rate of 7.54%. Inflation was at record high levels at 8.31%, driven by both international and local factors, including the depreciation of the Chilean peso against the US dollar, which recorded an average exchange rate of 809.44 $CLP/USD in 1Q22.

Macroeconomic outlook report: Chile 1Q22

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Macroeconomic overview

• During the first quarter of the year, the year-on-year rate of change of Chilean GDP declined by 4.85 p.p. from that recorded in 4Q21 to 6.88%. Despite the decline, this good figure was largely the result of private consumption, sustained by the high levels of household liquidity and the reduction of restrictions.
• Regarding the labour market, the unemployment rate decreased by 0.07 p.p. from the previous quarter to 7.53% during the first quarter of 2022. Employment in Chile presented a positive year-on-year rate of 7.54%, despite a drop of 1.28 p.p. from the previous quarter.
• During the first quarter, the Chilean peso depreciated against the US dollar compared to the previous quarter. The average exchange rate stood at 809.44 $CLP/USD, after falling by 15.80 pesos per dollar.
• Finally, the change in the price index was 8.31%, 1.68 p.p. higher than in 4Q21.

For more information, click here to access the executive document in pdf (only avalaible in Spanish).