Chile’s Growth Continues To Slow

Chile’s GDP grew by 2.9% in the third quarter of the year, leading economists to predict that the pace of economic expansion in 2006 may be the slowest in three years. Growth has slowed from 5.3% in the first quarter of the year, to 4.5% in the second quarter. Forecasts of 4.5% GDP growth over the year compare with a 6.3% rise last year. Higher lending rates, rising energy prices and interruptions to mining production (one of the main engines of the country’s economy), have all contributed to the slowdown in growth, analysts say. According to the Central Bank, export growth was up to 7.3% in the third quarter from 3.3% in the second quarter, while domestic demand growth fell back to 3.9% from 7.6%.