Chile
The Connoisseur Report 31-Jul-2021
Top 3 Company Headlines
Environmental regulator charges Minera Candelaria (BNamericas 28-Jul)
Codelco highest surplus in 10 years (La Tercera 30-Jul)
Uber drivers to be recognised as workers (DiarioUChile 31-Jul)
Top 3 Macro and Risk Headlines
Union at BHP's Escondida copper mine urges members to strike (Mining Weekly 29-Jul)
Gabriel Boric leads presidential polls (ANSA Latina 26-Jul)
Congress reviews creation of undersecretary of water (BNamericas 29-Jul)
The Connoisseur’s View
BHP’s tension with the miner’s union is very bad news at a time when the country is looking to get out of a worldwide pandemic and economic crisis. The call for a strike followed accusations from the union about the company attempting to impose its will and an insufficient contract offer. Reaching a deal is fundamental for the country’s biggest copper company, in the biggest mine in the world, in order to make way for a post-pandemic economic recovery.
Fun Fact: The Club Palestino Deportivo is a Chilean club playing in the First Division; founded in 1920 the name of the club reflects the origin in Chile's Palestinian community
The Connoisseur Report 31-May-2021
Top 3 Company Headlines
Constitutional uncertainty hits Aguas Andinas stock price (La Tercera 18 May)
EDPR deal for 628MW portfolio (Diario Financiero 28-May)
Plan 8 Energía Infinita $300m wind farm in Ñuble (La Discusion 25-May)
Top 3 Macro and Risk Headlines
Voters pick independents to draft constitution (Reuters 17-May)
Chile to launch satellites (ANSA Latina 27-May)
Chile begins 3rd retirement withdrawal: up to $19bn may go (EFE 03-May)
The Connoisseur’s View
Last year’s protests heavily influenced the results of the election to form the Constitution Convention. The biggest and expected loser is the Chilean right wing. They did not even make the third of the seats, their declared and realistic goal for these elections. There are two important outcomes of this election: 1) the high number of independent candidates elected and 2) the general failure of the traditional parties from both sides. This is going to have a big impact on November’s national elections.
Fun Fact: The world famous actor Pedro Pascal was born in Santiago de Chile: the Mandalorian is chilean!
The Connoisseur Report 31-Mar-2021
Top 3 Company Headlines
Heineken & Luksic buy $54m CCU shares (Diario Financiero 25-Mar)
Codelco shareholders meeting valued larger surpluses (PR 10-Mar)
CanSino to deliver 1.8m Covid vaccine doses by May (La Tercera 31-Mar)
Top 3 Macro and Risk Headlines
Chilean economy drops 5.8% in 2020 (ANSA Latina 18-Mar)
New measures to keep middle class afloat amid coronavirus crisis (Reuters 11-Mar)
Proposed 3% tax on copper & lithium to help recovery (Mining Weekly 26-Mar)
The Connoisseur’s View
Chile is turning around very quickly. Last month Covid was still widespread. Now the govt is receiving praise for an effective vaccination campaign. The situation is still serious. Most of the country is under a second national lockdown and there has been a peak in new cases.
The outlook for Chile’s economy is looking better. Copper prices are skyrocketing. The opposition’s idea to take advantage of the increase in copper prices might be the answer to kick-start the post-Covid recovery.
Fun Fact: The Chamber of Deputies approved a ban on single-use plastics (La Tercera 31-Mar)
The Connoisseur Report 28-Feb-2021
Top 3 Company Headlines
IDB Invest & Engie $125m Calama wind farm deal (La Tercera 03-Feb)
Delta & Latam JV approved (Diario Financiero 24-Feb)
SQM to develop Australian lithium project (La Tercera 17-Feb)
Top 3 Macro and Risk Headlines
President faces violence in the Araucanía (ANSA Latina 26-Feb)
Researchers confirm geothermal electricity potential in the south (La Tercera 12-Feb)
Chile world’s 4th largest wine exporter (Mundo Marítimo 01-Feb)
The Connoisseur’s View
Araucanía is one of the resource-richest regions of the country but has the poorest and most socially divided population. It is also the homeland of the Mapuche ethnic group. So far Piñera has done worse than most in managing the situation. In the last few months the president and the right wing parties in Chile have talked about a militarised solution. This would be the first time in the democratic era for something so drastic.
The social issue in the southern regions is one of the most important topics in the constitutional process. A successful rewriting of the constitution and the development of a new relation between the institutions and the Mapuche people might be a fresh start for a centenary problem.
Fun Fact: The most important football team in Chile is Colo-Colo which has won the league in 32 seasons
The Connoisseur Report 31-Jan-2021
Top 3 Company Headlines
Enel Chile commits to cut CO2 emissions 64% by 2023 (Diario Financiero 28-Jan)
First shipment from Sinovac arrives (ANSA Latina 28-Jan)
SQM says relations with indigenous communities are improving (Mining Weekly 18-Jan)
Top 3 Macro and Risk Headlines
Cochilco project an increase in the price of copper in 2021 (El Mostrador 28-Jan)
115k jobs lost in the Araucanía in 2020 (Biobio Chile 26-Jan)
Paula Narváez selected Socialist Party presidential candidate (Biobio Chile 29-Jan)
The Connoisseur’s View
The Connoisseur considers the copper price increase good news for Chile. The market has been tough and Covid-19 was expected to severely impact the economy.
Narváez is the strongest candidate for the presidency. She is a former Bachelet minister and widely supported by the centre-left and left coalition, which is likely to win the Nov-2021 elections. Narváez is the most likely to smoothly manage the delicate constitutional process which Chile is going through.
Fun Fact: The semantic origin of the slang word ‘Cachai’ (meaning “[do you] get it?”) comes from the English ‘to catch’
The Connoisseur Report 31-Dec-2020
Top 3 Company Headlines
Codelco presents a sustainability commitment agenda for 2030 (Bnamericas 15-Dec)
China Railway Intl Group wants to take over La Punilla reservoir project (La Discusión 22-Dec)
BHP Minera Escondida increased copper production (Diario Financiero 28-Dec)
Top 3 Macro and Risk Headlines
Massive vaccination campaign starts in Southern Chile (ANSA Latina 25-Dec)
Study on water shows maximum inequality in its distribution (La Tercera 06-Dec)
Tensions about lithium in EU relations (Interferencia 22-Dec)
The Connoisseur’s View
China has further strengthened its presence in Chile. This is controversial for the Chilean political class. It is not news for those who have been following developments in Chile’s economy over the last few years. La Tercera further underlines this by outlining Chinese companies’ projects over the last year (La Tercera 28-Nov). Western investors’ caution is China’s opportunity.
Fun Fact: Chilean President Piñera, who will be remembered as the least liked president in Chile’s history, was fined $3,500 for being caught taking a mask-less selfie on the beach with a ‘fan’ (Reuters 18-Dec)
The Connoisseur Report 30-Nov-2020
Top 3 Company Headlines
Workers at Lundin's Candelaria mine accept new agreement (Mining Weekly 23-Nov)
AES Gener’s hydroelectric Alto Maipo almost complete (Diario Financiero 20-Nov)
Chinese State Grid buys CGE (Prensa Latina 13-Nov)
Top 3 Macro and Risk Headlines
Constitutional referendum seeks social reforms (University of Miami 04-Nov)
Gigantic pension cash boost (Bloomberg 20-Nov)
Borders reopen to boost tourism (Clarin 22-Nov)
The Connoisseur’s View
The referendum result on 25-Oct will be an essential factor. International investors are waiting to see what is going to happen (Bloomberg 26-Oct). The Connoisseur is not worried. A better constitution is good for business. Developments over the next months are going to be exciting.
President Piñera opposes the withdrawal of 10% of the pension funds from AFP, arguing it will lead to a decrease in pensions. The Connoisseur is not confident about entrusting public funds to private companies in Latin America. There are too many negative historical precedents.
Fun Fact: The English pronunciation of "Cono Sur" (the most southern region in S.America which includes Chile) sounds like "Connoisseur", hence the name of this new monthly report