Chile’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew 2.5% during 2025, driven by domestic demand, in a scenario where investment – measured through gross fixed capital formation (GFCF) – showed outstanding performance, according to the National Accounts report of the Central Bank.
The annual result reflected the impact of both consumption and investment, in a context in which domestic demand increased 4.2%.
In detail, total investment registered an increase of 8.9%, explained mainly due to the 7.0% growth of GFCFwhich in turn represents its best performance since 2021 (16%).
Investment grew at a vigorous pace of 9.7% in the third quarter of 2025, a figure that was repeated in the last quarter.
This component was driven by increased purchases of machinery and equipment, particularly electrical and electronic equipment, as well as transportation vehicles such as trucks and buses.
Mining slowed GDP
The growth of the economy was slowed by mining. According to a report from the issuing institute, the mining GDP suffered a sharp drop of 6.2% in the fourth quarter of 2025, closing the year with a contraction of 1.3%.
This contrasted with the 3% growth shown by non-mining GDP, according to the National Accounts.
It should be noted that in July of last year the fatal accident occurred in El Teniente, the Codelco division that produces the most copper.
The issuer, in fact, said that copper extraction explained the decline in the sector. “The performance of copper mining was explained by lower ore grades and water restrictions that reduced production. Additionally, stoppages were recorded in some deposits,” the report stated.
In the rest of the activity, the higher production of gold and silver stood out, in line with the entry into operation of a new site. Additionally, the production of non-metallic minerals also increased, in line with greater lithium extraction. In contrast, iron production recorded a drop.
The report indicates that investment in machinery and equipment was the main driver within the GFCF, while the construction and other works component also contributed positively, although to a lesser extent, highlighting the increase in engineering works.
At the aggregate level, investment in fixed capital reached 24.2% of GDP in real terms during the year.
Regarding the evolution of GDP, the Central Bank said that the annual growth of 2.5% was above the preliminary figure previously estimated, and was accompanied by a better performance in the last quarter, where an acceleration was observed in seasonally adjusted terms.
It is worth remembering that the Chilean economy measured with the Imacec showed an average growth of 2.3% and the Economic Expectations Survey pointed to an expansion of 2.4%.
Domestic demand
From the perspective of spending, the dynamism of activity was sustained by domestic demand, while the external sector had a negative net effect, due to the fact that imports grew more than exports.
In the quarterly breakdown, GDP registered interannual variations of 2.9%, 3.7%, 1.7% and 1.6% in the first, second, third and fourth quarters, respectively.
The Central Bank also indicated that the 2025 growth occurred in a context of a slightly negative calendar effect and with a general expansion of most economic activities, although with falls in mining and in the electricity, gas and water sector.
Government of Gabriel Boric
With this result, the Chilean economy grew on average 2% during the government of Gabriel Boric, making it the second worst performance since the return of democracy in 1990.
In the first year of the current government, in 2022, GDP growth was 2.2%. The following year the increase was 0.5%, becoming the worst year of the current administration and the lowest since 2020, in the middle of the pandemic.
Then, in 2024 the increase was 2.6% (its best year) and it would now close with 2.3%.
With this, it will also be well below the 7.4% of Patricio Aylwin’s government; 5.5% of Eduardo Frei; from 4.8% during the Ricardo Lagos period; 3.5% of Michelle Bachelet 1 and 5.4% and 2.5% of the governments of Sebastián Piñera.
