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Chile Runs Out of Steam as Copper Stalls

Stalling copper prices have stalled the market rally. Local stocks significantly outperformed the EM average last year, but have been on the back foot in 2026 as copper prices stopped rising.

The domestic economy remains in the doldrums, with weak investment and credit activity in particular, and it's hard to motivate an equity/growth story if copper isn't moving - and especially not if it reverses.

Nor is the external position particularly exciting. Export earnings have picked up at the margin, but Chile is still a relative underperformer. Meanwhile, the basic BOP position is just in balance, interest rates are low by regional standards and the peso is just keeping pace with the rest of EM for now.

As before, the bottom line is that markets look good if this is a secular copper price boom. But there's not much there if the rally fades or reverses ... and as a result we aren't inclined to chase.

Chile Runs Out of Steam as Copper Stalls (PDF)

Chile Runs Out of Steam as Copper Stalls (Webcast)

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