Latest situation in Chile December 2023
According to the regular report of economy (December 2023) published by the embassy of Japan in Chile, the latest situation of the country can be summarized as below.:
①Renewable Energy
The Chilean government, the Magallanes provincial government, and a coalition of hydrogen companies have signed a public-private agreement on green hydrogen development, with the aim of creating high-quality job opportunities, accelerating industrialization, strengthening progress towards carbon neutrality and establishing H2V (green hydrogen) Advanced Research and Technology Center (which is planned to be tendered in 2024).
Also, the agreement enables planned regional human resource development, and is expected to compensate for the lack of technological innovation in some industries in Chile, such as solar power generation.
What is green hydrogen?
It is a type of sustainable fuel that can be used in a variety of vehicles, as well as energy storage for power grids, heating, steel production, and as a raw material for producing other compounds.
Chile has a strong potential to generate renewable energy, for example the sun in the north and winds in the south. That’s why Chile is considered as a country with a comparative advantage in green hydrogen production.
About renewable energy and carbon neutral news in Chile, please check this page, as well.
②Economics
The economic activity index in November recorded 1.2%. In the mining section recorded 2.7%.
The mining production index in the same month was 1.8%, and copper production decreased by 2.6%.
The export amount in December was 7.95 billion dollars (-13.9%), of which mining products raised 4.77 billion dollars (-15.2%, 60.0% of the total), of which copper raised 4.16 billion dollars (-8.1%, 87.3% of the total mining export value).
On the other hand, import value in the same month was 6.22 billion dollars (-12.6%), and the trade balance was a surplus of $1.73 billion.
*Percentages from the same month of the previous year
The amount of trade with China, Japan, and South Korea (November) resulted as below:
With China: exportation 3.20 billion (-5.1％), importation 1.54 billion (-4.9%), total amount of trade 4.73 billion (-5.0%)
With Japan: exportation 660 million (-9.9%), importation 130 million (-41.9%), total amount of trade 790 million (-17.6%)
With South Korea: exportation 370 million (-24.6%), importation 110 million (-24.0%), total amount of trade 480 million (-24.4%)
*Dollars, comparing to the same month of the previous year
References：The regular report of economy (December 2023), from the Embassy of Japan in Chile, Department of Economy.