Central Bank of Chile reports February Imacec fell 0.3% year on year as goods production declined

The Central Bank of Chile published preliminary February results for the Monthly Economic Activity Indicator (Imacec), showing a 0.3% decline versus the same month a year earlier. The seasonally adjusted series fell 0.3% from the previous month and increased 0.6% in twelve months, with February having the same number of business days as February 2025. The annual Imacec outcome reflected a 3.7% contraction in goods production, partly offset by a 1.6% rise in services, while trade increased 0.2%. Non-mining Imacec also declined 0.3% year on year, and in seasonally adjusted terms fell 0.3% from the prior month and rose 0.6% in twelve months. Within goods production, “other goods” and manufacturing fell, linked to lower fruit growing and extractive fishing and weaker processing of fishery products, while mining increased 1.0% on higher lithium and gold extraction partly offset by lower copper output. In seasonally adjusted terms, trade contracted 2.3% month on month, driven by wholesale trade, while services dipped 0.1% month on month, reflecting personal services despite an increase in business services.