Chile’s Peso Holds Firm Near 895 as Copper Pullback Cools Record Rally

Key Points

• The peso stayed supported by copper’s recent surge, even after a sharp one-day correction.
• A calm dollar index kept pressure off emerging-market FX, ahead of Friday’s US jobs report.
• Chilean stocks paused after records, as investors locked in gains and foreign flows turned choppier.

Chile’s peso opened Thursday steady near 895 per dollar, holding most of this week’s gains after briefly breaking below 900. The Central Bank’s Dólar Observado reference sat at 895.33 for the day, underscoring how tightly spot trading is hugging official benchmarks.

The main driver remains copper. Early in the week, the metal’s push to fresh highs gave the currency a clean tailwind and encouraged local traders to treat 900 as a psychological ceiling.

On Wednesday, that story hit a speed bump as copper dropped roughly 2.9% to about $5.83 a pound, taking some air out of the peso’s momentum without reversing it.

Globally, the dollar offered little fresh pressure. The dollar index hovered around 98.7 in early trade, with markets unwilling to take large bets before Friday’s US payrolls report.

The message from major desks has been consistent: recent US data have been mixed enough to keep the Federal Reserve cautious, rather than force a new hawkish turn.

Technically, the charts still lean toward peso strength, but the market is stretched. On the daily view, USD/CLP momentum is weak, with RSI near 38 and MACD deeply negative.

The weekly RSI around 30 signals an oversold dollar versus the peso, which often precedes sharp counter-trend bounces. Traders will watch resistance around 902–910, with higher hurdles near 923–926 and 935. Supports sit near 892.5, then 889–888.8.

Chile’s S&P IPSA eased to 10,876.8, down about 0.5%, after pushing into record territory. The pullback looked like disciplined profit-taking, not panic, and some strategists still see upside, though with more modest return expectations.

Foreign positioning sends a mixed message: the iShares MSCI Chile ETF shows negative net flows over the past month, but remains positive over the past year.

Top winners

• Chilean peso resilience near 895
• IPSA’s weekly uptrend still intact
• Long-horizon foreign demand (1-year ETF flows)
• Copper’s broader uptrend despite the dip
• Conservative, credibility-first monetary stance

Top losers

• Mallplaza (-3.8%)
• CMPC (-3.0%)
• Enel Chile (-2.6%)
• Copper on the day (about -2.9%)
• Short-term dollar-bull momentum into key resistance

This is part of The Rio Times’ daily coverage of Chilean markets and Latin American financial news.

For context on regional markets, see Brazil’s Ibovespa for the same session.

Also tracking regional peers: Colombia’s COLCAP closed the same session.

Related coverage: Brazil’s Morning Call | Chile’s Trade Surplus Swelled in December as Copper Led a Re