• The amount represented a 116% increase on January-September 2018.

At US$10,350 million, foreign direct investment (FDI) in Chile in the first nine months of this year was up by 116% on the same period last year. According to the Central Bank of Chile, there was a net inflow of US$1,235 million in September. The figure to September is the second highest for the five years between 2015 and 2019, exceeded only by that recorded in 2015.

The increase in FDI in the first nine months was led by equity contributions which, at  US$5,832 million, were up by 89% on their historical average, a noteworthy performance given the difficult international economic context.

Out of total FDI to September, equity accounted for 56% (US$5,832 million), followed by reinvestment of profits (37%) and related borrowing (6%).

The director of InvestChile, Cristián Rodríguez, recalled that FDI figures have varied widely in recent years so the figure to September does not necessarily mark a trend for the rest of the year. “Through to the third quarter, FDI figures have been positive and we hope that remains the case, despite events in the country. Any change as a result of recent events will be reflected in the figures to October which the Central Bank will publish in December,” he explained.

As shown in the graph below, FDI over the first nine months of this year was 70% higher than the inflow in the whole of 2018.