What Happened: The Chilean government has downgraded its 2019 growth projections from 2.6 percent to 2.0 to 2.2 percent, Finance Minister Ignacio Briones said, citing recent protests as one contributing factor, Reuters reported Nov. 4. Meanwhile, protest-related violence erupted on Nov. 4 as demonstrators clashed with police and looted stores in Santiago, Vina del Mar, Valparaiso and Concepcion.
Why It Matters: Chile's weekslong protests have already taken a toll on economic growth and forced the government to cancel the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit and U.N. climate change meeting. However, the Chilean economy is also feeling the effects of a global slowdown that has resulted in cooling economic growth in other countries.
Background: Chile has been experiencing violent protests in major cities that originated with a minor hike in metro fares and evolved into broad anti-government unrest to voice public dissatisfaction with economic inequality and pro-business policies.
Read More:
- Why Chile Is Chasing Tech Over Copper (Aug. 3, 2018)
- Why Cashing in on Lithium in South America Won't Be Easy (June 15, 2018)
- Chile: Santiago Approves China's Latest Electricity Utility Purchase (March 16, 2018)
