Chile's mining sector contracts in November as local copper production down 4.7%

According to Chile’s National Institute of Statistics (INE), the country’s industrial production index (IPI) contracted 5.0% in November 2022 y-o-y due to decreases in manufacturing (-7.8%) and mining (-3.2%) sectors while electricity, gas and water production was up 0.3%.

INE said that the 3.2% decline in Chile's mining sector (IPMin index) in November 2022 was primarily due to the lower activity registered in the country’s metallic mining subsector, which fell 4.1% primarily due to the decrease in extraction and processing of copper.

According to the report, Chile, the world’s largest producer of copper, mined 459,229 tonnes of copper in November 2022, which is 4.7% lower than 481,800 tonnes mined in November 2021.

Meanwhile, Chile's manufacturing production index (IPMan) decreased by 7.8% in November 2022 compared to the same month of the previous year, primarily due to the decline in manufacturing of chemical substances and products.

The agency added that the country’s electricity, gas and water production index (IPEGA) increased by 0.3% in November 2022 compared to November 2021 due to the growth in electricity generation.