Imacec revised the previous preliminary economic growth figures for 2023 by four tenths, from -0.2 to 0.2%.

This Monday the central bank published the “National Accounts of Chile: Evolution of economic activity in the fourth quarter of 2023”, detailing that economic activity increased 0.2% in annual terms.

Last year had three fewer business days than 2022, resulting in a calendar effect of -0.1 percentage points.

Domestic demand fell 4.2%, mainly affected by a contraction in household consumption.

On the supply side, EGA (Electricity, gas, water and waste management activity), personal services and transportation made the largest contributions to GDP growth.

“On the other hand, commercial activity stood out mainly on the downside,” indicated the central bank.

The report highlighted that in seasonally adjusted terms, the GDP showed an acceleration in the last quarter of the year, mainly influenced by personal services and transportation activities.

In contrast, mining activity fell in quarterly terms, partially offsetting the previous result.

“From a spending perspective, domestic demand decreased in line with lower household consumption and investment,” according to the report.

Household consumption decreased 5.2%, reflecting a drop in spending on non-durable goods and, to a lesser extent, durables. Meanwhile, spending on services increased.

GDP per quarter

In 2023, GDP increased 0.3% in the first quarter, -0.4% in the second, and it grew 0.6% and 0.4% in the last two quarters, respectively.

The central bank reports upwards revisions in GDP for 2021 and 2022, respectively from 11.7 to 11.3% and 2.4 to 2 .1%.

Regarding the preliminary Imacec figures published for 2023, the annual variation of GDP was revised upwards by four tenths, from -0.2 to 0.2%.

“This review was explained mainly by the incorporation of information not available for the previous estimates and the reconciliation process of the supply and use tables of the quarterly national accounts,” explained the entity.