Chile recorded a trade surplus of US$1.314 billion in May

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Chile recorded a trade surplus of US$1.314 billion in May, mainly driven by copper, which surpassed the US$4.70 mark per pound barrier for the first time in history at the beginning of May, advised the Central Bank.

In May, the country had exports totalling US$7.92 billion, a 34.9% increase over the same period last year, while imports reached US$7.159 billion, a year-on-year increase of 42.7%.

Mining exports reached US$5.333 billion, compared to US$3.197 billion in the same period of 2020 and of which US$4.967 billion were copper, the issuer indicated.

Chile accounts for 28% of global copper production, is the world’s top producer, and in 2019 produced a total of 5.7 million tons, down from a record 5.8 million in 2018.

The powerful mining industry has maintained its operations despite the restrictions of the pandemic. It has become a key sector for recovering the battered local economy, heavily hit by the pandemic crisis.

Giants such as BHP, Anglo American, Codelco, and Antofagasta Minerals operate in the country. Mining accounts for about 10% of GDP, although many small and medium-sized companies also work in the area.

The red metal, fundamental in the transmission of energy, experienced a rise unprecedented in a decade due to excess demand, the weakness of the dollar, fiscal stimuli in several countries, and expectations due to advances in vaccination against Covid-19, among other factors.

After months of decline due to the pandemic, copper began to recover at the end of 2020, with the economic reactivation of China, and on May 7 closed at US$4.70 per pound on the London Metal Exchange, an all-time high.

In recent weeks, it has stabilized at around US$4.50 per pound, although experts suggest that it will resume its upward trend.