Chile: power peso.

• Author: Fittipaldi, Santiago
• Position: Chilean peso exchange rate - Increase of copper prices - Art

World copper prices continue to climb and the Chilean peso is following in their wake. The situation raises concerns among exporters of products like salmon and wine, since a strong peso makes their products more expensive to foreign buyers. Financial analysts in Santiago believe those worries are misguided. They contend that the nominal exchange rate is not a good measure of competitiveness. Instead, they argue, the multilateral exchange rate is a better indicator, since it measures the peso against several foreign currencies, not just the U.S. dollar.

The Central Bank has hinted at intervening to halt the...