Central Bank of Chile’s Business Perceptions Report finds trade tensions have lifted uncertainty while financial conditions ease

The Central Bank of Chile published its latest Business Perceptions Report, finding that the rise in global trade tensions following the United States’ tariff increases in early April has raised Chilean firms’ sense of uncertainty. While most companies have not yet experienced direct impacts, the report points to widespread concern about the potential consequences of a trade conflict. Uncertainty is reflected in divergent expectations about the scale and direction of possible effects, with some firms anticipating mainly negative impacts and others expecting little harm to their businesses. Where impacts are expected, firms most commonly link them to higher prices for raw materials, inputs or inventories and to lower sales. Firms also reported that financial conditions have become less restrictive in recent months, citing lower interest rates and higher acceptance of credit applications, although credit demand remains limited and respondents do not anticipate further changes; there is a consensus that conditions will not return to pre-pandemic characteristics. Business conditions are generally seen as stable in the near term, and a larger share of firms report having investment plans for the year than in previous years, alongside reduced expected abandonment of those plans, but more firms are also reassessing execution of investments mainly due to uncertainty tied to the international environment.