Chile’s industrial production contracted by 5.1% year-on-year in July 2026, after having grown 1.3% in June. The downturn was driven primarily by the mining sector, which declined 7.2%. Within mining, metal extraction dropped 10.7%, as copper production and processing fell 9.4%. This weakness was largely attributed to adverse weather conditions in northern Chile that disrupted operations, as well as scheduled maintenance at major mining sites.
Manufacturing output also decreased, falling 4.9% year-on-year. The sharpest decline was in coke and refined petroleum products, which plunged 25.9%, as weather-related disruptions weighed on gasoline and diesel production. In contrast, utilities output edged up 0.3%, supported by a 0.8% increase in electricity generation, particularly from hydroelectric plants. On a month-on-month basis, total industrial production was down 3.8%.