Chile: Economic activity contracts at fastest rate on record in May
In May, the IMACEC economic activity index sank 15.3% on an annual basis (April: -14.1% year-on-year), marking the largest drop on record as the measures to curtail the spread of Covid-19 ravaged the economy.
May’s fall reflected a 17.0% contraction in the non-mining economy (April: -15.5% yoy), largely driven by the collapse of activity in the retail sector and, to a lesser extent, in construction and manufacturing. Meanwhile, the mining economy grew 1.2%, contrasting April’s 0.1% dip.
In month-on-month seasonally-adjusted terms, economic activity dropped 3.4% in May (April: -8.3% month-on-month seasonally-adjusted).