[28] It is recognized as one of the most prosperous countries in South America,[29] leading the region in areas such as competitiveness, income per capita, globalization, economic freedom, and low levels of perceived corruption.

[42] In 2023, in response to an economic slowdown, Chile introduced a temporary basic income program aimed at supporting families through transfer payments as part of an expansionary fiscal policy.

[43] After Spanish arrival in the 15th century Chilean economy came to revolve around autarchy estates called fundos and around the army that was engaged in the Arauco War.

Trade restrictions and monopolies established by the Spanish crown are credited for having held back economic development for much of the colonial times.

The League of Nations labeled Chile the country hardest hit by the Great Depression because 80% of government revenue came from exports of copper and nitrates, which were in low demand.

After the Great Depression Chilean economic policies changed toward import substitution industrialization and the Production Development Corporation was established.

[45] Growth in real GDP averaged 8% from 1991 to 1997,[citation needed] but fell to half that level in 1998 because of tight monetary policies (implemented to keep the current account deficit in check) and lower exports due to the Asian financial crisis.

Some major agriculture products of Chile includes grapes, apples, pears, onions, wheat, corn, oats, peaches, garlic, asparagus, beans, beef, poultry, wool, fish and timber.

[51] Through Chile's trade agreements, its agricultural products have gained access to a market controlling 77% of the world's GDP and by approximately 2012, 74% of Chilean agribusiness exports will be duty-free.

[52] Technology transfer has allowed Chile to build its global competitiveness and innovation and has led to the expansion of production as well as to an increase in average firm size in the industry.

[52] Chile's unique geography and climate make it ideal for winegrowing and the country has made the top ten list of wine producers many times in the last few decades.

[67] The service sector in Chile has grown fast and consistently in recent decades,[68] reinforced by the rapid development of communication and information technology, access to education and an increase in specialist skills and knowledge among the workforce.

Over the last ten years, people who live in Chile have enjoyed the introduction of new financial tools such as home equity loans, currency futures and options, factoring, leasing, and debit cards.

Beyond its general economic and political stability, the government has also encouraged the use of Chile as an "investment platform" for multinational corporations planning to operate in the region.

It is hoped that this, combined with some tax reforms to encourage domestic and foreign investment in research and development, will bring in additional FDI to new parts of the economy.

[47] According to The Heritage Foundation's Index of Economic Freedom in 2012, Chile has the strongest private property rights in Latin America, scoring 90 on a scale of 100.

[79] There are three main ways for Chilean firms to raise funds abroad: bank loans, issuance of bonds, and the selling of stocks on U.S. markets through American Depository Receipts (ADRs).

The structural balance nets out the effect of the economic cycle (including copper price volatility) on fiscal revenues and constrains expenditures to a correspondingly consistent level.

In practice, this means that expenditures rise when activity is low and decrease in booms[80] The target was of 1% of GDP between 2001 and 2007, it was reduced to 0.5% in 2008 and then to 0% in 2009 in the wake of the global financial crisis.

[87][88] According to the Basic Constitutional Act of the Central Bank of Chile (Law 18,840), its main objectives are to safeguard "the stability of the currency and the normal functioning of internal and external payments".

The price bands were ruled inconsistent with Chile's World Trade Organization (WTO) obligations in 2002, and the government has introduced legislation to modify them.

[47] Most imports are not subject to the full statutory tariff, due to the extensive preferences negotiated outside the multilateral system through Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs).

Continuing its export-oriented development strategy, Chile completed landmark free trade agreements in 2002 with the European Union and South Korea.

Chile, as a member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) organization, is seeking to boost commercial ties to Asian markets.

The P4 (Chile, Singapore, New Zealand, and Brunei) also plan to expand ties through adding a finance and investment chapter to the existing P4 agreement.

The percentage of Chileans with household incomes below the poverty line – defined as twice the cost of satisfying a person's minimal nutritional needs – fell from 45.1% in 1987 to 11.7% in 2015, according to government polls.

Statistics Commission, found "no basis for doubting the usability of the census data for most, if perhaps not all, of the customary uses" and recommended its release subject to the elimination of the imputation of housing units not observed on thBy 2021, the combined wealth of Chile's billionaires represented 16.1% of the country's gross domestic product (GDP Historians generally explain the origin of the social gap by tracing it back to colonial times, when most land was divided between Spaniards and their descendants.

In more recent history, social inequality deepened in the 1970s and 1980s under Augusto Pinochet's regime, with the privatization of public enterprises in favor of large family fortunes, the repression of trade unions and the rejection of the welfare state.

[105] Historians generally explain the origin of the social gap by tracing it back to colonial times, when most land was divided between Spaniards and their descendants.

In more recent history, social inequality deepened in the 1970s and 1980s under Augusto Pinochet's regime, with the privatization of public enterprises in favor of large family fortunes, the repression of trade unions and the rejection of the welfare state.